Regular exercise prevents oxidative stress-induced muscle wasting, at least partially by improving the antioxidant defense system. In the present study, we found that regular endurance exercise enhances the expression of p62/SQSTM1 (p62) and its phosphorylation at Ser 351 thereby dissociating nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) from Keap1, which results in increased Nrf2 nuclear translocation and DNA binding activity. These findings suggest that Ser 351 phosphorylation of p62 plays a critical role in this regulation.

Source: p62 and Nrf2 are essential for exercise-mediated enhancement of antioxidant protein in muscle