Potato Protein Ingestion Increases Muscle Protein Synthesis Rates at Rest and during Recovery from Exercise in Humans

Abstract

Exercise enthusiasts have long presumed animal protein to be superior to plant-derived options for muscle protein synthesis due to its essential amino acid profile. While many plant proteins are deficient in one or more essential amino acids necessary for optimal muscle growth and repair, this randomized, double blind, parallel group study showed that plant-derived proteins can still induce strong anabolic responses. Twenty-four young, healthy males between the ages of 20-28 years participated in this study at Maastricht University, The Netherlands. Participants received primed continuous L-[ring -13C6]-phenylalanine infusions while ingesting 30g potato derived protein or 30g milk protein following a single bout of unilateral resistance exercise. Blood and muscle biopsies were collected 5 hours following protein ingestion to assess post-prandial plasma amino acid profiles and mixed muscle protein synthesis rates at rest and during recovery from exercise. Results demonstrated that consuming 30 grams of potato-derived protein concentrate following resistance exercise strongly increased muscle protein synthesis rates to levels that did not differ from the response following the ingestion of an equivalent amount of milk protein concentrate.

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