Exercise Mimetics: Running Without a Road Map.

Exercise mimetics are bioactive compounds that activate signaling pathways to simulate exercise-like benefits. Physical exercise activates peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor δ (PPAR δ), a master transcriptional regulator of skeletal muscle oxidative metabolism, and also stimulates AMP-activated protein kinase, a regulator of skeletal muscle glucose uptake, fat oxidation, and mitochondrial biogenesis. Exercise mimetics have therapeutic potential by activating pathways that regulate metabolic endurance, but our knowledge of these compounds is based almost entirely on preclinical findings in rodents.