bims-moremu 2022-01-02 papers

bims-moremu

Biomed News

on Molecular regulators of muscle mass

Issue of 2022‒01‒02
twenty-nine papers selected by
Anna Vainshtein
Craft Science Inc.

p53 regulates skeletal muscle mitophagy and mitochondrial quality control following denervation-induced muscle disuse.
1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D deficiency induces sarcopenia by inducing skeletal muscle cell senescence.
Simultaneous loss of TSC1 and DEPDC5 in skeletal and cardiac muscles produces early-onset myopathy and cardiac dysfunction associated with oxidative damage and SQSTM1/p62 accumulation.
Peptide-Functionalized Dendrimer Nanocarriers for Targeted Microdystrophin Gene Delivery.
New Intracellular Peptide Derived from Hemoglobin Alpha Chain Induces Glucose Uptake and Reduces Blood Glycemia.
Biology of Activating Transcription Factor 4 (ATF4) and Its Role in Skeletal Muscle Atrophy.
Exercise: a molecular tool to boost muscle growth and mitochondrial performance in heart failure?
Whole body vibration activates AMPK/CPT1 signaling pathway of skeletal muscle in young and aging mice based on metabolomics study.
BVES is a novel interactor of ANO5 and regulates myoblast differentiation.
Dynamics of muscle growth and regeneration: Lessons from the teleost.
Characterization of Neuromuscular Junctions in Mice by Combined Confocal and Super-Resolution Microscopy.
Physical Exercise and Liver Autophagy: Potential Roles of IL6 and Irisin.
Association Between Fish Consumption and Muscle Mass and Function in Middle-Age and Older Adults.
Generating intrafusal skeletal muscle fibres in vitro: Current state of the art and future challenges.
Epigenetics of Skeletal Muscle-Associated Genes in the ASB, LRRC, TMEM, and OSBPL Gene Families.
Training-Induced Muscle Adaptations During Competitive Preparation in Elite Female Rowers.
Enhanced Oxygen Utilization Efficiency With Concomitant Activation of AMPK-TBC1D1 Signaling Nexus in Cyclophilin-D Conditional Knockout Mice.
Redox balance in human skeletal muscle-derived endothelial cells - Effect of exercise training.
Extracellular Secretagogin is internalized into the cells through endocytosis.
Insulin potentiates the response to capsaicin in dorsal root ganglion neurons in vitro and muscle afferents ex vivo in normal healthy rodents.
Moderate Intensity Endurance and Resistance Exercise Attenuates Cachexia in Tumor-bearing Mice.
Lipoprotein subfractions in patients with sarcopenia and their relevance to skeletal muscle mass and function.
Muscles in Winter: The Epigenetics of Metabolic Arrest.
Shortening deactivation: quantifying a critical component of cyclical muscle contraction.
Exercise Reduces H3K9me3 and Regulates Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor and GABRA2 in an Age Dependent Manner.
Comparing Acute, High Dietary Protein and Carbohydrate Intake on Transcriptional Biomarkers, Fuel Utilisation and Exercise Performance in Trained Male Runners.
Single-cell transcriptomics of LepR-positive skeletal cells reveals heterogeneous stress-dependent stem and progenitor pools.
Mitochondrial Quality Surveillance: Mitophagy in cardiovascular health and disease.
Genetic architecture of motor neuron diseases.

J Biol Chem. 2021 Dec 24. pii: S0021-9258(21)01350-8. [Epub ahead of print] 101540

p53 regulates skeletal muscle mitophagy and mitochondrial quality control following denervation-induced muscle disuse.

Jonathan M Memme, Ashley N Oliveira, David A Hood.

  Persistent inactivity promotes skeletal muscle atrophy, marked by mitochondrial aberrations that affect strength, mobility, and metabolic health leading to the advancement of disease. Mitochondrial quality control (MQC) pathways include biogenesis (synthesis), mitophagy/lysosomal turnover, and the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPRmt) which serve to maintain an optimal organelle network. Tumor suppressor p53 has been implicated in regulating muscle mitochondria in response to cellular stress; however, its role in the context of muscle disuse has yet to be explored, and whether p53 is necessary for MQC remains unclear. To address this, we subjected p53 muscle-specific knockout (mKO) and wild-type (WT) mice to unilateral denervation. Transcriptomic and pathway analyses revealed dysregulation of pathways pertaining to mitochondrial function, and especially turnover, in mKO muscle following denervation. Protein and mRNA data of the MQC pathways indicated activation of the UPRmt and mitophagy-lysosome systems along with reductions in mitochondrial biogenesis and content in WT and mKO tissue following chronic denervation. However, p53 ablation also attenuated the expression of autophagy/mitophagy machinery, reduced autophagic flux, and enhanced lysosomal dysfunction. While similar reductions in mitochondrial biogenesis and content were observed between genotypes, MQC dysregulation exacerbated mitochondrial dysfunction in mKO fibers, evidenced by elevated reactive oxygen species (ROS). Moreover, acute experiments indicate that p53 mediates the expression of transcriptional regulators of MQC pathways as early as 1 day following denervation. Together, our data illustrate exacerbated mitochondrial dysregulation with denervation stress in p53 mKO tissue, thus indicating that p53 contributes to organellar maintenance via regulation of MQC pathways during muscle atrophy.

Keywords:  lysosome; mitochondria; mitochondrial biogenesis; mitochondrial quality control; mitophagy; muscle atrophy; p53; skeletal muscle; transcriptomics; unfolded protein response (UPR)

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbc.2021.101540
Am J Transl Res. 2021 ;13(11): 12638-12649

1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D deficiency induces sarcopenia by inducing skeletal muscle cell senescence.

Shuxiang Yu, Biqi Ren, Haiyun Chen, David Goltzman, Jianshe Yan, Dengshun Miao.

To determine if 1,25(OH)2D deficiency can induce age-related sarcopenia, the skeletal muscular phenotype of male wild-type (WT) and Cyp27b1 knockout (KO) mice were compared at 3 and 6 months of age. We found that muscle mass, grip strength and muscle fiber size were significantly decreased in aging Cyp27b1 KO male mice. The expression levels of genes related to mitochondrial metabolic activity, and antioxidant enzymes including SOD1, catalase, Nqo1 and Gcs were significantly down-regulated in skeletal muscle tissue of Cyp27b1 KO male mice; in contrast, the percentage of p16+ and p21+ myofibers, and the expression of p16, p19, p21, p53, TNFα, IL6 and MMP3 at mRNA and/or protein levels were significantly increased. We then injected tibialis anterior muscle of WT and Cyp27b1+/- male mice with BaCl2, and analyzed the regenerative ability of skeletal muscle cells 7 days later. The results revealed that the numbers of newly formed regenerating central nucleated fibers (CNF), the percentage of BrdU+ cells and the expression of MyoD, MyHC and Myf5 at mRNA levels were significantly down-regulated in the injured skeletal muscle tissue of Cyp27b1+/- mice. In summary, our studies indicate that 1,25(OH)2D deficiency can result in the development of age-related sarcopenia by inducing oxidative stress, skeletal muscular cell senescence and SASP, and by inhibiting skeletal muscle regeneration. Cyp27b1 KO mice can therefore be used as an animal model of age-related sarcopenia in order to investigate the pathogenesis of age-related sarcopenia and potentially to test intervention measures for treatment of sarcopenia.

Keywords: Vitamin D deficiency; muscular cell senescence and regeneration; oxidative stress; sarcopenia
Autophagy. 2021 Dec 29. 1-20

Simultaneous loss of TSC1 and DEPDC5 in skeletal and cardiac muscles produces early-onset myopathy and cardiac dysfunction associated with oxidative damage and SQSTM1/p62 accumulation.

Chun-Seok Cho, Yongsung Kim, Sung-Rye Park, Boyoung Kim, Carol Davis, Irene Hwang, Susan V Brooks, Jun Hee Lee, Myungjin Kim.

  By promoting anabolism, MTORC1 is critical for muscle growth and maintenance. However, genetic MTORC1 upregulation promotes muscle aging and produces age-associated myopathy. Whether MTORC1 activation is sufficient to produce myopathy or indirectly promotes it by accelerating tissue aging is elusive. Here we examined the effects of muscular MTORC1 hyperactivation, produced by simultaneous depletion of TSC1 and DEPDC5 (CKM-TD). CKM-TD mice produced myopathy, associated with loss of skeletal muscle mass and force, as well as cardiac failure and bradypnea. These pathologies were manifested at eight weeks of age, leading to a highly penetrant fatality at around twelve weeks of age. Transcriptome analysis indicated that genes mediating proteasomal and macroautophagic/autophagic pathways were highly upregulated in CKM-TD skeletal muscle, in addition to inflammation, oxidative stress, and DNA damage signaling pathways. In CKM-TD muscle, autophagosome levels were increased, and the AMPK and ULK1 pathways were activated; in addition, autophagy induction was not completely blocked in CKM-TD myotubes. Despite the upregulation of autolysosomal markers, CKM-TD myofibers exhibited accumulation of autophagy substrates, such as SQSTM1/p62 and ubiquitinated proteins, suggesting that the autophagic activities were insufficient. Administration of a superoxide scavenger, tempol, normalized most of these molecular pathologies and subsequently restored muscle histology and force generation. However, CKM-TD autophagy alterations were not normalized by rapamycin or tempol, suggesting that they may involve non-canonical targets other than MTORC1. These results collectively indicate that the concomitant muscle deficiency of TSC1 and DEPDC5 can produce early-onset myopathy through accumulation of oxidative stress, which dysregulates myocellular homeostasis.Abbreviations: AMPK: AMP-activated protein kinase; CKM: creatine kinase, M-type; COX: cytochrome oxidase; DEPDC5: DEP domain containing 5, GATOR1 subcomplex subunit; DHE: dihydroethidium; EDL: extensor digitorum longus; EIF4EBP1: eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E binding protein 1; GAP: GTPase-activating protein; GTN: gastrocnemius; MTORC1: mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase complex 1; PLA: plantaris; QUAD: quadriceps; RPS6KB/S6K: ribosomal protein S6 kinase beta; SDH: succinate dehydrogenase; SOL: soleus; SQSTM1: sequestosome 1; TA: tibialis anterior; TSC1: TSC complex subunit 1; ULK1: unc-51 like autophagy activating kinase 1.

Keywords:  MTORC1; ULK1; myopathy; oxidative stress; tempol

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2021.2016255
Pharmaceutics. 2021 Dec 15. pii: 2159. [Epub ahead of print]13(12):

Peptide-Functionalized Dendrimer Nanocarriers for Targeted Microdystrophin Gene Delivery.

Jessica Hersh, José Manuel Condor Capcha, Camila Iansen Irion, Guerline Lambert, Mauricio Noguera, Mohit Singh, Avinash Kaur, Emre Dikici, Joaquín J Jiménez, Lina A Shehadeh, Sylvia Daunert, Sapna K Deo.

  Gene therapy is a good alternative for determined congenital disorders; however, there are numerous limitations for gene delivery in vivo including targeted cellular uptake, intracellular trafficking, and transport through the nuclear membrane. Here, a modified G5 polyamidoamine (G5 PAMAM) dendrimer-DNA complex was developed, which will allow cell-specific targeting to skeletal muscle cells and transport the DNA through the intracellular machinery and the nuclear membrane. The G5 PAMAM nanocarrier was modified with a skeletal muscle-targeting peptide (SMTP), a DLC8-binding peptide (DBP) for intracellular transport, and a nuclear localization signaling peptide (NLS) for nuclear uptake, and polyplexed with plasmid DNA containing the GFP-tagged microdystrophin (µDys) gene. The delivery of µDys has been considered as a therapeutic modality for patients suffering from a debilitating Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) disorder. The nanocarrier-peptide-DNA polyplexes were prepared with different charge ratios and characterized for stability, size, surface charge, and cytotoxicity. Using the optimized nanocarrier polyplexes, the transfection efficiency in vitro was determined by demonstrating the expression of the GFP and the µDys protein using fluorescence and Western blotting studies, respectively. Protein expression in vivo was determined by injecting an optimal nanocarrier polyplex formulation to Duchenne model mice, mdx4Cv. Ultimately, these nanocarrier polyplexes will allow targeted delivery of the microdystrophin gene to skeletal muscle cells and result in improved muscle function in Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients.

Keywords:  functional peptides; gene delivery; muscular dystrophy; nanocarriers; targeted delivery

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics13122159
Pharmaceutics. 2021 Dec 16. pii: 2175. [Epub ahead of print]13(12):

New Intracellular Peptide Derived from Hemoglobin Alpha Chain Induces Glucose Uptake and Reduces Blood Glycemia.

Renée N O Silva, Ricardo P Llanos, Rosangela A S Eichler, Thiago B Oliveira, Fábio C Gozzo, William T Festuccia, Emer S Ferro.

  Intracellular peptides were shown to derive from proteasomal degradation of proteins from mammalian and yeast cells, being suggested to play distinctive roles both inside and outside these cells. Here, the role of intracellular peptides previously identified from skeletal muscle and adipose tissues of C57BL6/N wild type (WT) and neurolysin knockout mice were investigated. In differentiated C2C12 mouse skeletal muscle cells, some of these intracellular peptides like insulin activated the expression of several genes related to muscle contraction and gluconeogenesis. One of these peptides, LASVSTVLTSKYR (Ric4; 600 µg/kg), administrated either intraperitoneally or orally in WT mice, decreased glycemia. Neither insulin (10 nM) nor Ric4 (100 µM) induced glucose uptake in adipose tissue explants obtained from conditional knockout mice depleted of insulin receptor. Ric4 (100 µM) similarly to insulin (100 nM) induced Glut4 translocation to the plasma membrane of C2C12 differentiated cells, and increased GLUT4 mRNA levels in epididymal adipose tissue of WT mice. Ric4 (100 µM) increased both Erk and Akt phosphorylation in C2C12, as well as in epididymal adipose tissue from WT mice; Erk, but not Akt phosphorylation was activated by Ric4 in tibial skeletal muscle from WT mice. Ric4 is rapidly degraded in vitro by WT liver and kidney crude extracts, such a response that is largely reduced by structural modifications such as N-terminal acetylation, C-terminal amidation, and substitution of Leu8 for DLeu8 (Ac-LASVSTV[DLeu]TSKYR-NH2; Ric4-16). Ric4-16, among several Ric4 derivatives, efficiently induced glucose uptake in differentiated C2C12 cells. Among six Ric4-derivatives evaluated in vivo, Ac-LASVSTVLTSKYR-NH2 (Ric4-2; 600 µg/kg) and Ac-LASVSTV[DLeu]TSKYR (Ric4-15; 600 µg/kg) administrated orally efficiently reduced glycemia in a glucose tolerance test in WT mice. The potential clinical application of Ric4 and Ric4-derivatives deserves further attention.

Keywords:  bioactive peptides; diabetes; glucose uptake; insulin signaling; peptide drug discovery

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics13122175
J Nutr. 2021 Dec 27. pii: nxab440. [Epub ahead of print]

Biology of Activating Transcription Factor 4 (ATF4) and Its Role in Skeletal Muscle Atrophy.

Scott M Ebert, Blake B Rasmussen, Andrew R Judge, Sarah M Judge, Lars Larsson, Ronald C Wek, Tracy G Anthony, George R Marcotte, Matthew J Miller, Mark A Yorek, Adrian Vella, Elena Volpi, Jennifer I Stern, Matthew D Strub, Zachary Ryan, John J Talley, Christopher M Adams.

  Activating Transcription Factor 4 (ATF4) is a multifunctional transcription regulatory protein in the basic leucine zipper (bZIP) superfamily. ATF4 can be expressed in most if not all mammalian cell types, and it can participate in a variety of cellular responses to specific environmental stresses, intracellular derangements, or growth factors. Because ATF4 is involved in a wide range of biological processes, its roles in human health and disease are not yet fully understood. Much of our current knowledge about ATF4 comes from investigations in cultured cell models, where ATF4 was originally characterized and where further investigations continue to provide new insights. ATF4 is also an increasingly prominent topic of in vivo investigations in fully differentiated mammalian cell types, where our current understanding of ATF4 is less complete. Here, we review some important high-level concepts and questions concerning the basic biology of ATF4. We then discuss current knowledge and emerging questions about the in vivo role of ATF4 in one fully differentiated cell type, mammalian skeletal muscle fibers.

Keywords:  ATF4; sarcopenia; skeletal muscle atrophy; tomatidine; ursolic acid

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxab440
Eur J Heart Fail. 2021 Dec 26.

Exercise: a molecular tool to boost muscle growth and mitochondrial performance in heart failure?

Kirsten T Nijholt, Pablo I Sánchez-Aguilera, Suzanne N Voorrips, Rudolf A de Boer, B Daan Westenbrink.

  Impaired exercise capacity is the key symptom of heart failure (HF) and is associated with reduced quality of life and higher mortality rates. Unfortunately current therapies, although generally lifesaving, have only small or marginal effects on exercise capacity. Specific strategies to alleviate exercise intolerance may improve quality of life, while possibly improving prognosis as well. There is overwhelming evidence that physical exercise improves performance in cardiac and skeletal muscles in health and disease. Unravelling the mechanistic underpinnings of exercise-induced improvements in muscle function could provide targets that will allow us to boost exercise performance in HF. With the current review we discuss: 1) recently discovered signalling pathways that govern physiological muscle growth as well as mitochondrial quality control mechanisms that underlie metabolic adaptations to exercise, 2) the mechanistic underpinnings of exercise intolerance in HF and the benefits of exercise in HF patients on molecular, functional and prognostic levels and 3) potential molecular therapeutics to improve exercise performance in HF. We propose that novel molecular therapies to boost adaptive muscle growth and mitochondrial quality control in HF should always be combined with some form of exercise training.

Keywords:  Cardiac and skeletal muscle; Exercise intolerance; Exercise training; Heart failure; Mitochondrial adaptation; Physiological muscle hypertrophy

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1002/ejhf.2407
Endocr J. 2021 Dec 24.

Whole body vibration activates AMPK/CPT1 signaling pathway of skeletal muscle in young and aging mice based on metabolomics study.

Dingwen Jiang, Chang Liu, Ye Chen, Xuejiao Xing, Danmeng Zheng.

  Whole-body vibration (WBV) can improve skeletal muscle function in aging mice, but whether the effect on young and aging skeletal muscle is consistent has not been studied. We selected C57BL/6J mouse models, which were divided into young control group (YC), young vibration group (YV), aging control group (AC) and aging vibration group (AV). After 12 weeks of WBV, we found that compared with the YC group, the pathways of linoleic acid metabolism, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, arachidonic acid metabolism, nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism, glycine, serine and threonine metabolism, and arginine and proline metabolism improved significantly in the YV group. Compared with the AC group, the pathways of arachidonic acid metabolism, alpha-linolenic acid metabolism, biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids, pentose and glucuronate interconversions and pentose phosphate pathway improved significantly in the AV group. Furthermore, we found that WBV decreased triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and free fatty acid (FFA) levels in aging mice, improved mitochondrial membrane potential, and increased the expression of phosphorylated activated protein kinase (p-AMPK), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor coactivator-1α (PGC-1α) and carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1B (CPT1B) in the skeletal muscle of young and aging mice. Our study revealed that WBV mainly improved lipid metabolism and amino acid metabolism pathways of skeletal muscle in young mice and mainly improved lipid metabolism and glucose metabolism pathways of skeletal muscle in aging mice. WBV can activate the AMPK/CPT1 signaling pathway and improve mitochondrial function in skeletal muscle in both young and aging mice.

Keywords:  AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK); Aging; Metabolomics; Skeletal muscle; Whole body vibration

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1507/endocrj.EJ21-0343
Cell Biosci. 2021 Dec 28. 11(1): 222

BVES is a novel interactor of ANO5 and regulates myoblast differentiation.

Haiwen Li, Li Xu, Yandi Gao, Yuanbojiao Zuo, Zuocheng Yang, Lingling Zhao, Zhiheng Chen, Shuliang Guo, Renzhi Han.

  BACKGROUND: Anoctamin 5 (ANO5) is a membrane protein belonging to the TMEM16/Anoctamin family and its deficiency leads to the development of limb girdle muscular dystrophy R12 (LGMDR12). However, little has been known about the interactome of ANO5 and its cellular functions.RESULTS: In this study, we exploited a proximal labeling approach to identify the interacting proteins of ANO5 in C2C12 myoblasts stably expressing ANO5 tagged with BioID2. Mass spectrometry identified 41 unique proteins including BVES and POPDC3 specifically from ANO5-BioID2 samples, but not from BioID2 fused with ANO6 or MG53. The interaction between ANO5 and BVES was further confirmed by co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP), and the N-terminus of ANO5 mediated the interaction with the C-terminus of BVES. ANO5 and BVES were co-localized in muscle cells and enriched at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane. Genome editing-mediated ANO5 or BVES disruption significantly suppressed C2C12 myoblast differentiation with little impact on proliferation.
CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, these data suggest that BVES is a novel interacting protein of ANO5, involved in regulation of muscle differentiation.

Keywords:  ANO5; BVES; BioID2; Muscle differentiation; Muscular dystrophy; Proximity labeling

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1186/s13578-021-00735-w
Exp Cell Res. 2021 Dec 24. pii: S0014-4827(21)00547-4. [Epub ahead of print] 112991

Dynamics of muscle growth and regeneration: Lessons from the teleost.

Jessica D Manneken, Mervyn V P Dauer, Peter D Currie.

  The processes of myogenesis during both development and regeneration share a number of similarities across both amniotes and teleosts. In amniotes, the process of muscle formation is considered largely biphasic, with developmental myogenesis occurring through hyperplastic fibre deposition and postnatal muscle growth driven through hypertrophy of existing fibres. In contrast, teleosts continue generating new muscle fibres during adult myogenesis through a process of eternal hyperplasia using a dedicated stem cell system termed the external cell layer. During developmental and regenerative myogenesis alike, muscle progenitors interact with their niche to receive cues guiding their transition into myoblasts and ultimately mature myofibres. During development, muscle precursors receive input from neighbouring embryological tissues; however, during repair, this role is fulfilled by other injury resident cell types, such as those of the innate immune response. Recent work has focused on the role of macrophages as a pro-regenerative cell type which provides input to muscle satellite cells during regenerative myogenesis. As zebrafish harbour a satellite cell system analogous to that of mammals, the processes of regeneration can be interrogated in vivo with the imaging intensive approaches afforded in the zebrafish system. This review discusses the strengths of zebrafish with a focus on both the similarities and differences to amniote myogenesis during both development and repair.

Keywords:  Muscle development; Muscle regeneration; Muscle stem cells; Satellite cells; Zebrafish

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yexcr.2021.112991
J Vis Exp. 2021 Dec 08.

Characterization of Neuromuscular Junctions in Mice by Combined Confocal and Super-Resolution Microscopy.

Martina Marinello, Jérémie Cosette, Caroline Bogni, Jérôme Denard, Daniel Stockholm, Ana Buj-Bello.

Neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) are highly specialized synapses between lower motor neurons and skeletal muscle fibers that play an essential role in the transmission of molecules from the nervous system to voluntary muscles, leading to contraction. They are affected in many human diseases, including inherited neuromuscular disorders such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), congenital myasthenic syndromes (CMS), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Therefore, monitoring the morphology of neuromuscular junctions and their alterations in disease mouse models represents a valuable tool for pathological studies and preclinical assessment of therapeutic approaches. Here, methods for labeling and analyzing the three-dimensional (3D) morphology of the pre- and postsynaptic parts of motor endplates from murine teased muscle fibers are described. The procedures to prepare samples and measure NMJ volume, area, tortuosity and axon terminal morphology/occupancy by confocal imaging, and the distance between postsynaptic junctional folds and acetylcholine receptor (AChR) stripe width by super-resolution stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy are detailed. Alterations in these NMJ parameters are illustrated in mutant mice affected by SMA and CMS.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3791/63032
Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 2021 Dec 27.

Physical Exercise and Liver Autophagy: Potential Roles of IL6 and Irisin.

Ana P Pinto, Eduardo R Ropelle, Joe Quadrilatero, Adelino S R da Silva.

ABSTRACT: Autophagic dysregulation contributes to liver diseases. Although some investigations have examined the effects of endurance and resistance exercise on autophagy activation, potential myokines responsible for skeletal muscle-liver crosstalk are still unknown. Based on experimental studies and bioinformatics, we hypothesized that interleukin-6 (IL6) and irisin might be key players in the contraction-induced release of molecules that regulate liver autophagic responses.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1249/JES.0000000000000278
Front Nutr. 2021 ;8 746880

Association Between Fish Consumption and Muscle Mass and Function in Middle-Age and Older Adults.

Maha H Alhussain, Moodi Mathel ALshammari.

  Background: Sarcopenia, the age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass and function, represents a crucial risk factor for disability and mortality. Increasing intake of some nutrients, particularly protein and omega-3 fatty acids seems to be a promising strategy to augment muscle mass and function. Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the beneficial effects of fish consumption on muscle mass and function among middle-age and older adults. Methods: Twenty-two adults aged 50-85 years participated in this study. Participants were asked to consume 150-170-g of fish for lunch twice a week for a 10-week period. During that period, participants were asked to maintain their normal diet and physical activity. Outcome measures included anthropometry, muscle mass, and muscle function. All these measures were assessed at baseline, week 5, and week 10. Repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to analyze statistical significance. Results: Consuming fish twice a week for 10 weeks significantly increased the skeletal muscle mass and appendicular lean mass divided by height squared (ALM/h2) (p < 0.01). Handgrip strength and gait speed <0.8 m/s were also improved (p < 0.01) at week 10 compared with that at baseline. Discussion: Consuming fish seems to improve muscle mass and function and may slow sarcopenia progression in middle-age and older adults.

Keywords:  fish; muscle function; muscle mass; omega-3 fatty acids; protein; sarcopenia

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2021.746880
J Tissue Eng. 2020 Jan-Dec;11:11 2041731420985205

Generating intrafusal skeletal muscle fibres in vitro: Current state of the art and future challenges.

Philip Barrett, Tom J Quick, Vivek Mudera, Darren J Player.

  Intrafusal fibres are a specialised cell population in skeletal muscle, found within the muscle spindle. These fibres have a mechano-sensory capacity, forming part of the monosynaptic stretch-reflex arc, a key component responsible for proprioceptive function. Impairment of proprioception and associated dysfunction of the muscle spindle is linked with many neuromuscular diseases. Research to-date has largely been undertaken in vivo or using ex vivo preparations. These studies have provided a foundation for our understanding of muscle spindle physiology, however, the cellular and molecular mechanisms which underpin physiological changes are yet to be fully elucidated. Therefrom, the use of in vitro models has been proposed, whereby intrafusal fibres can be generated de novo. Although there has been progress, it is predominantly a developing and evolving area of research. This narrative review presents the current state of art in this area and proposes the direction of future work, with the aim of providing novel pre-clinical and clinical applications.

Keywords:  Skeletal muscle; intrafusal fibre; muscle spindle; proprioception; tissue engineering

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1177/2041731420985205
Epigenomes. 2020 Jan 30. pii: 1. [Epub ahead of print]4(1):

Epigenetics of Skeletal Muscle-Associated Genes in the ASB, LRRC, TMEM, and OSBPL Gene Families.

Kenneth C Ehrlich, Michelle Lacey, Melanie Ehrlich.

  Much remains to be discovered about the intersection of tissue-specific transcription control and the epigenetics of skeletal muscle (SkM), a very complex and dynamic organ. From four gene families, Leucine-Rich Repeat Containing (LRRC), Oxysterol Binding Protein Like (OSBPL), Ankyrin Repeat and Socs Box (ASB), and Transmembrane Protein (TMEM), we chose 21 genes that are preferentially expressed in human SkM relative to 52 other tissue types and analyzed relationships between their tissue-specific epigenetics and expression. We also compared their genetics, proteomics, and descriptions in the literature. For this study, we identified genes with little or no previous descriptions of SkM functionality (ASB4, ASB8, ASB10, ASB12, ASB16, LRRC14B, LRRC20, LRRC30, TMEM52, TMEM233, OSBPL6/ORP6, and OSBPL11/ORP11) and included genes whose SkM functions had been previously addressed (ASB2, ASB5, ASB11, ASB15, LRRC2, LRRC38, LRRC39, TMEM38A/TRIC-A, and TMEM38B/TRIC-B). Some of these genes have associations with SkM or heart disease, cancer, bone disease, or other diseases. Among the transcription-related SkM epigenetic features that we identified were: super-enhancers, promoter DNA hypomethylation, lengthening of constitutive low-methylated promoter regions, and SkM-related enhancers for one gene embedded in a neighboring gene (e.g., ASB8-PFKM, LRRC39-DBT, and LRRC14B-PLEKHG4B gene-pairs). In addition, highly or lowly co-expressed long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) genes probably regulate several of these genes. Our findings give insights into tissue-specific epigenetic patterns and functionality of related genes in a gene family and can elucidate normal and disease-related regulation of gene expression in SkM.

Keywords:  Ankyrin Repeat and Suppressor of Cytokine Signaling Box; DNA methylation; Leucine-rich Repeat; Oxysterol-Binding Protein-Like; enhancer; heart; myoblasts; skeletal muscle; super-enhancers; transmembrane protein

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/epigenomes4010001
Front Sports Act Living. 2021 ;3 781942

Training-Induced Muscle Adaptations During Competitive Preparation in Elite Female Rowers.

Stephan van der Zwaard, Tommie F P Koppens, Guido Weide, Koen Levels, Mathijs J Hofmijster, Jos J de Koning, Richard T Jaspers.

  Training-induced adaptations in muscle morphology, including their magnitude and individual variation, remain relatively unknown in elite athletes. We reported changes in rowing performance and muscle morphology during the general and competitive preparation phases in elite rowers. Nineteen female rowers completed 8 weeks of general preparation, including concurrent endurance and high-load resistance training (HLRT). Seven rowers were monitored during a subsequent 16 weeks of competitive preparation, including concurrent endurance and resistance training with additional plyometric loading (APL). Vastus lateralis muscle volume, physiological cross-sectional area (PCSA), fascicle length, and pennation angle were measured using 3D ultrasonography. Rowing ergometer power output was measured as mean power in the final 4 minutes of an incremental test. Rowing ergometer power output improved during general preparation [+2 ± 2%, effect size (ES) = 0.22, P = 0.004], while fascicle length decreased (-5 ± 8%, ES = -0.47, P = 0.020). Rowing power output further improved during competitive preparation (+5 ± 3%, ES = 0.52, P = 0.010). Here, morphological adaptations were not significant, but demonstrated large ESs for fascicle length (+13 ± 19%, ES = 0.93), medium for pennation angle (-9 ± 15%, ES = -0.71), and small for muscle volume (+8 ± 13%, ES = 0.32). Importantly, rowers showed large individual differences in their training-induced muscle adaptations. In conclusion, vastus lateralis muscles of elite female athletes are highly adaptive to specific training stimuli, and adaptations largely differ between individual athletes. Therefore, coaches are encouraged to closely monitor their athletes' individual (muscle) adaptations to better evaluate the effectiveness of their training programs and finetune them to the athlete's individual needs.

Keywords:  3-D ultrasound imaging; fascicle length; hypertrophy; muscle architecture; rowing; skeletal muscle adaptation

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2021.781942
Front Physiol. 2021 ;12 756659

Enhanced Oxygen Utilization Efficiency With Concomitant Activation of AMPK-TBC1D1 Signaling Nexus in Cyclophilin-D Conditional Knockout Mice.

Jeejabai Radhakrishnan, Alvin Baetiong, Raúl J Gazmuri.

  We have previously reported in HEK 293 T cells and in constitutive cyclophilin-D (Cyp-D) knockout (KO) mice that Cyp-D ablation downregulates oxygen consumption (VO2) and triggers an adaptive response that manifest in higher exercise endurance with less VO2. This adaptive response involves a metabolic switch toward preferential utilization of glucose via AMPK-TBC1D1 signaling nexus. We now investigated whether a similar response could be triggered in mice after acute ablation of Cyp-D using tamoxifen-induced ROSA26-Cre-mediated (i.e., conditional KO, CKO) by subjecting them to treadmill exercise involving five running sessions. At their first treadmill running session, CKO mice and controls had comparable VO2 (208.4 ± 17.9 vs. 209.1 ± 16.8 ml/kg min-1), VCO2 (183.6 ± 17.2 vs. 184.8 ± 16.9 ml/kg min-1), and RER (0.88 ± 0.043 vs. 0.88 ± 0.042). With subsequent sessions, CKO mice displayed more prominent reduction in VO2 (genotype & session interaction p = 0.000) with less prominent reduction in VCO2 resulting in significantly increased RER (genotype and session interaction p = 0.013). The increase in RER was consistent with preferential utilization of glucose as respiratory substrate (4.6 ± 0.8 vs. 4.0 ± 0.9 mg/min, p = 0.003). CKO mice also performed a significantly higher treadmill work for given VO2 expressed as a power/VO2 ratio (7.4 ± 0.2 × 10-3 vs. 6.7 ± 0.2 10-3 ratio, p = 0.025). Analysis of CKO skeletal muscle tissue after completion of five treadmill running sessions showed enhanced AMPK activation (0.669 ± 0.06 vs. 0.409 ± 0.11 pAMPK/β-tubulin ratio, p = 0.005) and TBC1D1 inactivation (0.877 ± 0.16 vs. 0.565 ± 0.09 pTBC1D1/β-tubulin ratio, p < 0.05) accompanied by increased glucose transporter-4 levels consistent with activation of the AMPK-TBC1D1 signaling nexus enabling increased glucose utilization. Taken together, our study demonstrates that like constitutive Cyp-D ablation, acute Cyp-D ablation also induces a state of increased O2 utilization efficiency, paving the way for exploring the use of pharmacological approach to elicit the same response, which could be beneficial under O2 limiting conditions.

Keywords:  conditional knockout; cyclophilin-D; exercise capacity; oxygen consumption; treadmill exercise

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2021.756659
Free Radic Biol Med. 2021 Dec 22. pii: S0891-5849(21)01117-5. [Epub ahead of print]

Redox balance in human skeletal muscle-derived endothelial cells - Effect of exercise training.

Camilla Hansen, Sophie Møller, Thomas Ehlers, Kate A Wickham, Jens Bangsbo, Lasse Gliemann, Ylva Hellsten.

  Aerobic training can improve vascular endothelial function in-vivo. The aim of this study was to elucidate the mechanisms underlying this improvement in isolated human microvascular endothelial cells. Sedentary males, aged 57 ± 6 years completed 8 weeks of intense aerobic training. Resting muscle biopsies were obtained from the thigh muscle and used for isolation of endothelial cells (pre n = 23, post n = 16). The cells were analyzed for mitochondrial respiration, H2O2 emission, glycolysis, protein levels of antioxidants, NADPH oxidase, endothelial nitric oxide (NO) synthase and prostacyclin synthase (PGI2S). In-vivo microvascular function, assessed by acetylcholine infusion and arterial blood pressure were also determined. Endothelial mitochondrial respiration and H2O2 formation were similar before and after training whereas the expression of superoxide dismutase and the expression of glutathione peroxidase were 2.4-fold (p = 0.012) and 2.3-fold (p = 0.006) higher, respectively, after training. In-vivo microvascular function was increased by 1.4-fold (p = 0.036) in parallel with a 2.1-fold increase in endothelial PGI2S expression (p = 0.041). Endothelial cell glycolysis was reduced after training, as indicated by a 65% lower basal production of lactate (p = 0.003) and a 30% lower expression of phosphofructokinase (p = 0.011). Subdivision of the participants according to blood pressure at base-line (n = 23), revealed a 2-fold higher (p = 0.049) rate of H2O2 production in endothelial cells from hypertensive participants. Our data show that exercise training increases skeletal muscle microvascular endothelial cell metabolism, antioxidant capacity and the capacity to form prostacyclin. Moreover, elevated blood pressure is associated with increased endothelial mitochondrial ROS formation.

Keywords:  Mitochondria; Physical activity; Reactive oxygen species; Respirometry; Vascular function

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2021.12.265
FEBS J. 2021 Dec 30.

Extracellular Secretagogin is internalized into the cells through endocytosis.

Radhika Khandelwal, Anand Kumar Sharma, Bhim B Biswa, Yogendra Sharma.

  Secretagogin (SCGN) is a calcium-sensor protein with a regulatory role in glucose metabolism and the secretion of several peptide hormones. Many, but not all, functions of SCGN can be explained by its intracellular manifestation. Despite early data on SCGN secretion, the secretory mechanism, biological fate, physiological implications, and trans-cellular signaling of extracellular SCGN remain unknown. We here report that extracellular SCGN is readily internalized into the C2C12 cells in an energy-dependent manner. Using endocytosis inhibitors, we demonstrate that SCGN internalizes via clathrin-mediated endocytosis, following which, SCGN localizes largely in the cytosol. Exogenous SCGN treatment induces a global proteomic reprogramming in C2C12 cells. Gene ontology search suggests that SCGN-induced proteomic reprogramming favors protein synthesis and cellular growth. We thus validated the cell proliferative action of SCGN using C2C12, HepG2, and NIH-3T3 cell lines. Based on the data, we propose that circulatory SCGN is internalized into the target cells and modulates the expression of cell growth-related proteins. The work suggests that extracellular SCGN is a functional protein, which communicates with specific cell types and directly modulates cell proliferation.

Keywords:  Ca2+ sensor protein; Cell growth; Endocytosis; Extracellular Secretagogin; Transcriptional regulation

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1111/febs.16338
J Physiol. 2021 Dec 30.

Insulin potentiates the response to capsaicin in dorsal root ganglion neurons in vitro and muscle afferents ex vivo in normal healthy rodents.

Amane Hori, Hotta Norio, Ayumi Fukazawa, Juan A Estrada, Kimiaki Katanosaka, Kazue Mizumura, Jun Sato, Rie Ishizawa, Han-Kyul Kim, Gary A Iwamoto, Wanpen Vongpatanasin, Jere H Mitchell, Scott A Smith, Masaki Mizuno.

  KEY POINTS: Evidence suggests insulin centrally activates the sympathetic nervous system, and a chemical stimulus to tissues activates the sympathetic nervous system via thin fibre muscle afferents. Insulin is reported to modulate putative chemical sensitive channels in the dorsal root ganglion neurons of these afferents. In the present study, we demonstrate that insulin potentiates the responsiveness of thin fibre afferents to capsaicin at muscle tissue levels as well as at the level of dorsal root ganglion neurons. In addition, we demonstrate that insulin augments the sympathetic nerve activity response to capsaicin in vivo. These data suggests that sympathoexcitation is peripherally mediated via insulin-induced chemical sensitization. The present study proposes a possible physiological role of insulin in the regulation of chemical sensitivity in somatosensory thin fibre muscle afferents.ABSTRACT: Systemic insulin administration evokes sympathoexcitatory actions but the mechanisms underlying these observations are unknown. We reported that insulin sensitizes the response of thin-fibre primary afferents, as well as the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) that subserve them, to mechanical stimuli. However, little is known about the effects of insulin on primary neuronal responses to chemical stimuli. TRPV1, whose agonist is capsaicin (CAP), is widely expressed on chemically-sensitive metaboreceptors and/or nociceptors. The aim of this investigation was to determine the effects of insulin on CAP-activated currents in small DRG neurons and CAP-induced action potentials in thin-fibre muscle afferents of normal healthy rodents. Additionally, we investigated whether insulin potentiates sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) responses to CAP. In whole cell patch-clamp recordings from cultured mice DRG neurons in vitro, the fold change in CAP-activated current from pre- to post-application of insulin (n = 13) was significantly (P<0.05) higher than those with a vehicle control (n = 14). Similar results were observed in single-fibre recording experiments ex vivo as insulin potentiated CAP-induced action potentials compared to vehicle controls (n = 9 per group, P<0.05). Furthermore, insulin receptor blockade with GSK1838705, significantly suppressed the insulin-induced augmentation in CAP-activated currents (n = 13) as well as the response magnitude of CAP-induced action potentials (n = 9). Likewise, the renal SNA response to CAP after intramuscular injection of insulin (n = 8) was significantly (P<0.05) greater compared to vehicle (n = 9). The findings suggest that insulin potentiates TRPV1 responsiveness to CAP at the DRG and muscle tissue levels, possibly contributing to the augmentation in sympathoexcitation during activities such as physical exercise. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Keywords:  chemical sensitization; exercise pressor reflex; group IV muscle afferents; hyperinsulinemia; primary sensory neuron; transient receptor potential vanilloid 1

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1113/JP282740
Anticancer Res. 2022 Jan;42(1): 397-405

Moderate Intensity Endurance and Resistance Exercise Attenuates Cachexia in Tumor-bearing Mice.

Nicole R Wood, Jacob Garritson, Alissa Mathias, James M Haughian, Reid Hayward.

  BACKGROUND/AIM: Cancer cachexia encompasses several deleterious physiological alterations associated with functional impairments, poor quality of life, and increased mortality. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of chronic moderate intensity exercise training on markers of cachexia.MATERIALS AND METHODS: Balb/c mice were randomly assigned to sedentary (SED) or exercise (EX) groups and EX mice were further randomly assigned to one of three exercise modalities (aerobic, resistance, combined).
RESULTS: Cachexia was induced in SED animals inoculated with C26 cells, as evidenced by significant changes in numerous markers. All cachexia-related perturbations were significantly attenuated in EX versus SED animals. Systemic inflammation was significantly decreased in all EX groups, as evident by a normalization of spleen mass and plasma IL-6.
CONCLUSION: Multiple moderate intensity exercise modalities can provide significant benefits in cachectic mice, and this may be due, at least in part, to decreased systemic inflammation.

Keywords:  Cachexia; aerobic exercise; colon cancer; colon-26; inflammation; muscle fiber type; resistance exercise

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.21873/anticanres.15498
Exp Gerontol. 2021 Dec 23. pii: S0531-5565(21)00450-2. [Epub ahead of print]159 111668

Lipoprotein subfractions in patients with sarcopenia and their relevance to skeletal muscle mass and function.

Hui Gong, Yang Liu, Xing Lyu, Lini Dong, Xiangyu Zhang.

  OBJECTIVE: Loss of skeletal muscle mass is a characteristic of aging. Growing evidence suggests the role of fatty acids and their derived lipid intermediates in the regulation of skeletal muscle and function. However, the exact association between lipoprotein subfractions and sarcopenia in elderly individuals remains unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the levels of lipoprotein subfractions in sarcopenia patients and their relationship with skeletal muscle mass and function.METHODS: A total of 84 elderly Chinese subjects aged ≥65 years who did not have diseases that obviously affected lipid metabolism were included. Concentrations of lipoprotein subfractions, including total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC), HDL2, HDL3, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), intermediate-density lipoprotein (IDL), VLDL3, LDL-particle (LDL-P), lipoprotein(a) and remnant-like particle cholesterol (RLP-C), were determined by vertical auto profile. Triglyceride (TG) was measured by an enzymatic colorimetric assay. The skeletal muscle index (SMI) was assessed by bioelectrical impedance analysis. Handgrip strength was measured using a hand-held dynamometer.
RESULTS: The levels of TC, TG, LDL-C, LDL-P, IDL, VLDL, VLDL3, RLP-C and C-reactive protein were significantly higher in sarcopenia patients than in controls (p < 0.05). Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient analysis showed that the TC, TG, LDL-C, IDL, VLDL, VLDL3, and RLP-C levels were negatively associated with the SMI; The TG, IDL, VLDL, VLDL3, and RLP-C were negatively correlated with handgrip strength. In multivariate stepwise regression analysis, the VLDL and RLP-C levels were significantly correlated with the SMI. The sensitivity and specificity of the combined measurement of VLDL and RLP-C in predicting sarcopenia were 69.8% and 92.5% (AUC: 0.831; 95% CI:(0.739, 0.924); p < 0.05).
CONCLUSION: The occurrence of sarcopenia is associated with disorders of lipid metabolism, particularly VLDL and RLP-C.

Keywords:  Lipoprotein subfraction; Sarcopenia; Skeletal muscle mass; Vertical auto profile

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2021.111668
Epigenomes. 2021 Dec 16. pii: 28. [Epub ahead of print]5(4):

Muscles in Winter: The Epigenetics of Metabolic Arrest.

W Aline Ingelson-Filpula, Kenneth B Storey.

  The winter months are challenging for many animal species, which often enter a state of dormancy or hypometabolism to "wait out" the cold weather, food scarcity, reduced daylight, and restricted mobility that can characterize the season. To survive, many species use metabolic rate depression (MRD) to suppress nonessential metabolic processes, conserving energy and limiting tissue atrophy particularly of skeletal and cardiac muscles. Mammalian hibernation is the best recognized example of winter MRD, but some turtle species spend the winter unable to breathe air and use MRD to survive with little or no oxygen (hypoxia/anoxia), and various frogs endure the freezing of about two-thirds of their total body water as extracellular ice. These winter survival strategies are highly effective, but create physiological and metabolic challenges that require specific biochemical adaptive strategies. Gene-related processes as well as epigenetic processes can lower the risk of atrophy during prolonged inactivity and limited nutrient stores, and DNA modifications, mRNA storage, and microRNA action are enacted to maintain and preserve muscle. This review article focuses on epigenetic controls on muscle metabolism that regulate MRD to avoid muscle atrophy and support winter survival in model species of hibernating mammals, anoxia-tolerant turtles and freeze-tolerant frogs. Such research may lead to human applications including muscle-wasting disorders such as sarcopenia, or other conditions of limited mobility.

Keywords:  anoxia; cold-hardiness; freeze tolerance; hibernation; hypoxia; metabolic rate depression; muscle; torpor

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/epigenomes5040028
Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2021 12 29.

Shortening deactivation: quantifying a critical component of cyclical muscle contraction.

Amy K Loya, Sarah K Van Houten, Bernadette M Glasheen, Douglas M Swank.

  A muscle undergoing cyclical contractions requires fast and efficient muscle activation and relaxation to generate high power with relatively low energetic cost. To enhance activation and increase force levels during shortening, some muscle types have evolved stretch activation (SA), a delayed increased in force following rapid muscle lengthening. SA's complementary phenomenon is shortening deactivation (SD), a delayed decrease in force following muscle shortening. SD increases muscle relaxation, which decreases resistance to subsequent muscle lengthening. While it might be just as important to cyclical power output, SD has received less investigation than SA. To enable mechanistic investigations into SD and quantitatively compare it to SA, we developed a protocol to elicit SA and SD from Drosophila and Lethocerus indirect flight muscles (IFM) and Drosophila jump muscle. When normalized to isometric tension, Drosophila IFM exhibited a 118% SD tension decrease, Lethocerus IFM dropped by 97%, and Drosophila jump muscle decreased by 37%. The same order was found for normalized SA tension: Drosophila IFM increased by 233%, Lethocerus IFM by 76%, and Drosophila jump muscle by only 11%. SD occurred slightly earlier than SA, relative to the respective length change, for both IFMs; but SD was exceedingly earlier than SA for jump muscle. Our results suggest SA and SD evolved to enable highly efficient IFM cyclical power generation and may be caused by the same mechanism. However, jump muscle SA and SD mechanisms are likely different, and may have evolved for a role other than to increase the power output of cyclical contractions.

Keywords:  insect; locomotion; muscle mechanics; shortening deactivation; stretch activation

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpcell.00281.2021
Front Aging Neurosci. 2021 ;13 798297

Exercise Reduces H3K9me3 and Regulates Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor and GABRA2 in an Age Dependent Manner.

Andra Ionescu-Tucker, Christopher W Butler, Nicole C Berchtold, Dina P Matheos, Marcelo A Wood, Carl W Cotman.

  Exercise improves cognition in the aging brain and is a key regulator of neuronal plasticity genes such as BDNF. However, the mechanism by which exercise modifies gene expression continues to be explored. The repressive histone modification H3K9me3 has been shown to impair cognition, reduce synaptic density and decrease BDNF in aged but not young mice. Treatment with ETP69, a selective inhibitor of H3K9me3's catalyzing enzyme (SUV39H1), restores synapses, BDNF and cognitive performance. GABA receptor expression, which modulates BDNF secretion, is also modulated by exercise and H3K9me3. In this study, we examined if exercise and ETP69 regulated neuronal plasticity genes by reducing H3K9me3 at their promoter regions. We further determined the effect of age on H3K9me3 promoter binding and neuronal plasticity gene expression. Exercise and ETP69 decreased H3K9me3 at BDNF promoter VI in aged mice, corresponding with an increase in BDNF VI expression with ETP69. Exercise increased GABRA2 in aged mice while increasing BDNF 1 in young mice, and both exercise and ETP69 reduced GABRA2 in young mice. Overall, H3K9me3 repression at BDNF and GABA receptor promoters decreased with age. Our findings suggest that exercise and SUV39H1 inhibition differentially modulate BDNF and GABRA2 expression in an age dependent manner.

Keywords:  BDNF; ETP69; H3K9me3; aging; epigenetics; exercise; hippocampus

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2021.798297
Nutrients. 2021 Dec 08. pii: 4391. [Epub ahead of print]13(12):

Comparing Acute, High Dietary Protein and Carbohydrate Intake on Transcriptional Biomarkers, Fuel Utilisation and Exercise Performance in Trained Male Runners.

Matthew Furber, Simone Pyle, Michael Roberts, Justin Roberts.

  Manipulating dietary macronutrient intake may modulate adaptive responses to exercise, and improve endurance performance. However, there is controversy as to the impact of short-term dietary modification on athletic performance. In a parallel-groups, repeated measures study, 16 trained endurance runners (maximal oxygen uptake (V˙O2max): 64.2 ± 5.6 mL·kg-1·min-1) were randomly assigned to, and provided with, either a high-protein, reduced-carbohydrate (PRO) or a high-carbohydrate (CHO) isocaloric-matched diet. Participants maintained their training load over 21-consecutive days with dietary intake consisting of 7-days habitual intake (T1), 7-days intervention diet (T2) and 7-days return to habitual intake (T3). Following each 7-day dietary period (T1-T3), a micro-muscle biopsy was taken for assessment of gene expression, before participants underwent laboratory assessment of a 10 km treadmill run at 75% V˙O2max, followed by a 95% V˙O2max time to exhaustion (TTE) trial. The PRO diet resulted in a modest change (1.37-fold increase, p = 0.016) in AMPK expression, coupled with a significant increase in fat oxidation (0.29 ± 0.05 to 0.59 ± 0.05 g·min-1, p < 0.0001). However, a significant reduction of 23.3% (p = 0.0003) in TTE post intervention was observed; this reverted back to pre levels following a return to the habitual diet. In the CHO group, whilst no change in sub-maximal fuel utilisation occurred at T2, a significant 6.5% increase in TTE performance (p = 0.05), and a modest, but significant, increase in AMPK (p = 0.042) and PPAR (p = 0.029) mRNA expression compared to T1 were observed; with AMPK (p = 0.011) and PPAR (p = 0.044) remaining significantly elevated at T3. In conclusion, a 7-day isocaloric high protein diet significantly compromised high intensity exercise performance in trained runners with no real benefit on gene markers of training adaptation. A significant increase in fat oxidation during submaximal exercise was observed post PRO intervention, but this returned to pre levels once the habitual diet was re-introduced, suggesting that the response was driven via fuel availability rather than cellular adaptation. A short-term high protein, low carbohydrate diet in combination with endurance training is not preferential for endurance running performance.

Keywords:  AMPK; PGC-1α; dietary intake; endurance performance; protein; runners; substrate oxidation

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13124391
EMBO J. 2021 Dec 27. e108415

Single-cell transcriptomics of LepR-positive skeletal cells reveals heterogeneous stress-dependent stem and progenitor pools.

Chunyang Mo, Jingxin Guo, Jiachen Qin, Xiaoying Zhang, Yuxi Sun, Hanjing Wei, Dandan Cao, Yiying Zhang, Chengchen Zhao, Yanhong Xiong, Yong Zhang, Yao Sun, Li Shen, Rui Yue.

  Leptin receptor (LepR)-positive cells are key components of the bone marrow hematopoietic microenvironment, and highly enrich skeletal stem and progenitor cells that maintain homeostasis of the adult skeleton. However, the heterogeneity and lineage hierarchy within this population has been elusive. Using genetic lineage tracing and single-cell RNA sequencing, we found that Lepr-Cre labels most bone marrow stromal cells and osteogenic lineage cells in adult long bones. Integrated analysis of Lepr-Cre-traced cells under homeostatic and stress conditions revealed dynamic changes of the adipogenic, osteogenic, and periosteal lineages. Importantly, we discovered a Notch3+ bone marrow sub-population that is slow-cycling and closely associated with the vasculatures, as well as key transcriptional networks promoting osteo-chondrogenic differentiation. We also identified a Sca-1+ periosteal sub-population with high clonogenic activity but limited osteo-chondrogenic potential. Together, we mapped the transcriptomic landscape of adult LepR+ stem and progenitor cells and uncovered cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying their maintenance and lineage specification.

Keywords:  LepR+ cells; bone marrow stromal cells; periosteum; single-cell RNA-seq; skeletal stem/progenitor cells

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.15252/embj.2021108415
Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2021 12 29.

Mitochondrial Quality Surveillance: Mitophagy in cardiovascular health and disease.

Rachel Y Diao, Asa B Gustafsson.

  Selective autophagy of the mitochondria, known as mitophagy, is a major mitochondrial quality control pathway in the heart that is involved in removing unwanted or dysfunctional mitochondria from the cell. Baseline mitophagy is critical for maintaining the fitness of the mitochondrial population by continuous turnover of aged and less functional mitochondria. Mitophagy is also critical in adapting to stress associated with mitochondrial damage or dysfunction. The removal of damaged mitochondria prevents ROS-mediated damaged to proteins and DNA and suppresses activation of inflammation and cell death. Impairments in mitophagy are associated with the pathogenesis of many diseases, including cancers, inflammatory diseases, neurodegeneration, and cardiovascular disease. Mitophagy is a highly regulated and complex process that requires the coordination of labeling dysfunctional mitochondria for degradation while simultaneously promoting de novo autophagosome biogenesis adjacent to the cargo. In this review, we provide an update on our current understanding of these steps in mitophagy induction and discuss the physiological and pathophysiological consequences of altered mitophagy in the heart.

Keywords:  Parkin; autophagy; heart; mitochondria; mitophagy

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpcell.00360.2021
J Neurol Sci. 2021 Dec 22. pii: S0022-510X(21)02801-X. [Epub ahead of print]434 120099

Genetic architecture of motor neuron diseases.

Rishabh Chaudhary, Vipul Agarwal, Mujeeba Rehman, Arjun Singh Kaushik, Vikas Mishra.

  Motor neuron diseases (MNDs) are rare and frequently fatal neurological disorders in which motor neurons within the brainstem and spinal cord regions slowly die. MNDs are primarily caused by genetic mutations, and > 100 different mutant genes in humans have been discovered thus far. Given the fact that many more MND-related genes have yet to be discovered, the growing body of genetic evidence has offered new insights into the diverse cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in the aetiology and pathogenesis of MNDs. This search may aid in the selection of potential candidate genes for future investigation and, eventually, may open the door to novel interventions to slow down disease progression. In this review paper, we have summarized detailed existing research findings of different MNDs, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), spinal bulbar muscle atrophy (SBMA) and hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) in relation to their complex genetic architecture.

Keywords:  Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; Hereditary spastic paraplegia; Motor neuron disease; Spinal bulbar muscle atrophy; Spinal muscular atrophy

DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jns.2021.120099