Muscle Cell News Volume 3.24 | Jul 16 2018

TOP STORY

A_2A Receptor Activation Attenuates Hypertensive Cardiac Remodeling via Promoting Brown Adipose Tissue-Derived FGF21

Investigators showed that adenosine A_2A receptor knockout causes interscapular BAT (iBAT) dysfunction, leading to accelerated cardiac remodeling in hypertension compared with wild-type mice. Recombinant FGF21 administration improved cardiac remodeling in iBAT-depleted hypertensive mice. [Cell Metab] Abstract | Graphical Abstract

(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)

CARDIAC MUSCLE CELLS

Selective Filopodia Adhesion Ensures Robust Cell Matching in the Drosophila Heart

Scientists quantitatively explored the dynamics and regulation of cell matching processes utilizing Drosophila cardiogenesis. They found that cell matching is highly robust at boundaries between cardioblast (CB) subtypes, and filopodia of different CB subtypes have distinct binding affinities. [Dev Cell] Abstract | Graphical Abstract

Downregulation of miR-130a, Antagonized Doxorubicin-Induced Cardiotoxicity via Increasing the PPARγ Expression in mESCs-Derived Cardiac Cells

The expression of miR-130a increases sharply upon doxorubicin (Dox) treatment while specific antagomiR-130a reversed Dox-induced reduced expression of PPARγ, cellular apoptosis, and inflammation. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

SKELETAL MUSCLE CELLS

Mitofusin 2 Regulates Axonal Transport of Calpastatin to Prevent Neuromuscular Synaptic Elimination in Skeletal Muscles

The authors report that mitofusin 2 (Mfn2) acts as a dominant suppressor of neuromuscular synaptic loss to preserve skeletal muscles. Through preserving neuromuscular synapses, increasing neuronal Mfn2 prevented skeletal muscle wasting in both SOD1^G93A and aged mice, whereas deletion of neuronal Mfn2 produced neuromuscular synaptic dysfunction and skeletal muscle atrophy. [Cell Metab] Abstract | Press Release | Graphical Abstract

Nintedanib Decreases Muscle Fibrosis and Improves Muscle Function in a Murine Model of Dystrophinopathy

Researchers report the effects of nintedanib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, in the mdx murine model of Duchenne muscle dystrophy. Nintedanib reduced the fibrotic process in a murine model of dystrophinopathy after one month of treatment. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Quantitative Proteomic Characterization of Cellular Pathways Associated with Altered Insulin Sensitivity in Skeletal Muscle following High-Fat Diet Feeding and Exercise Training

Scientists characterized the skeletal muscle proteome following exercise training (ET) in mice fed chow or high-fat diet (HFD). ET increased exercise performance, lowered body-weight, decreased fat mass and improved muscle insulin action in chow- and HFD-fed mice. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Damage to the Myogenic Differentiation of C2C12 Cells by Heat Stress Is Associated with Up-Regulation of Several Selenoproteins

The damage to development of mouse skeletal muscle myotubes by heat stress accompanied with the up-regulation of both selenoprotein encoding genes and proteins, which suggested a potential protective effect of selenoprotein on hyperthermia associated damage in C2C12 cells. [Sci Rep] Full Article

SMOOTH MUSCLE CELLS

The Expression of MMP‐1 and MMP‐9 Is Up‐Regulated by Smooth Muscle Cells after Their Cross‐Talk with Macrophages in High Glucose Conditions

The authors hypothesized that in diabetes, the interplay between macrophages (MAC) and smooth muscle cells (SMC) in high glucose conditions may modify the expression of metalloproteases involved in plaque vulnerability. [J Cell Mol Med] Abstract | Full Article

Apoptosis Signal-Regulating Kinase 1 (ASK1) Inhibition Attenuates Human Airway Smooth Muscle Growth and Migration in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

In addition, to anti-mitogenic potential, ASK1 inhibitor prevented TGFb1-induced migration of airway smooth muscle cells in vitro. Immunoblotting revealed that anti-mitogenic effects are mediated by JNK and p38MAP kinase-signaling pathways as evident by reduced phosphorylation of downstream effectors JNK1/2 and p38MAP kinases respectively with no effect on ERK1/2. [Clin Sci (Lond)] Abstract

Transforming Growth Factor β1 Suppresses Proinflammatory Gene Program Independent of Its Regulation on Vascular Smooth Muscle Differentiation and Autophagy

Investigators revealed that transforming growth factor β1 suppressed the expression of a broad array of proinflammatory genes while potently induced the expression of contractile genes in cultured primary human coronary artery smooth muscle cells. [Cell Signal] Abstract

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A Muscle Stem Cell Support Group: Coordinated Cellular Responses in Muscle Regeneration

Skeletal muscle has an extraordinary regenerative capacity due to the activity of tissue-specific muscle stem cells. Consequently, these cells have received the most attention in studies investigating the cellular processes of skeletal muscle regeneration. However, efficient capacity to rebuild this tissue also depends on additional cells in the local milieu, as disrupting their normal contributions often leads to incomplete regeneration. The authors review these additional cells that contribute to the regenerative process. [Dev Cell] Abstract

Visit our reviews page to see a complete list of reviews in the muscle cell research field.

PTC Therapeutics Announces Positive Data from Its Translarna^™ Phase II Clinical Trial in Children as Young as Two Years with Nonsense Mutation Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

PTC Therapeutics, Inc. announced the presentation of data from the Translarna Phase II Study 030 demonstrating that the safety and pharmacokinetic profile of Translarna in children from two to five years with nonsense mutation Duchenne muscular dystrophy was consistent with that for older children. [Press release from PTC Therapeutics, Inc. discussing research presented at the International Congress on Neuromuscular Diseases, Vienna] Press Release

Acceleron Receives FDA Orphan Drug Designation for ACE-083 in Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy

Acceleron Pharma Inc. announced that the FDA has granted orphan drug designation for ACE-083, the company’s locally acting “Myostatin+” muscle agent, for the treatment of patients with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy. [Acceleron Pharma Inc.] Press Release

MediciNova Announces Clinical Data from Subgroup Analyses of Completed Clinical Trial of MN-166 (Ibudilast) in ALS

MediciNova, Inc. announced clinical data from ad-hoc subgroup analyses of MediciNova’s completed clinical trial of MN-166 in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which was conducted at Carolinas HealthCare System’s Neuromuscular/ALS-MDA Center at Carolinas HealthCare System Neurosciences Institute. [MediciNova, Inc.] Press Release

Science Journals End Open-Access Trial with Gates Foundation

The publisher of Science ended a pilot partnership that allowed open-access (OA) publishing for researchers funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The trial was an effort to accommodate a policy clash between the Gates Foundation, which has enforced strict OA demands since 2017, and publishers that run subscription journals which don’t comply with those terms. [Nature News] Editorial

Researchers Celebrate Rejection of Controversial Copyright Policy

Early-career researchers are pleased at European leaders’ rejection of a copyright policy that would have introduced restrictions to text-and-data mining of scientific papers. [Chemistry World] Editorial

NEW The American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) Annual Meeting 2018
December 8-12, 2018
San Diego, California, United States

Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the community.

NEW Postdoctoral Position – BIH StemCell Techniques (Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research)

NEW Postdoctoral Research Fellow – Cardiac Cells (University of British Columbia)

NEW Postdoctoral Fellow – Development of Strategies to Recover Muscle Mass (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)

Postdoctoral Associate – Muscle Cell Research (University of Louisville)

Research Associate – Smooth Muscle Cells (University of Cambridge)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Immunoengineering for Muscle Regeneration (Duke University)

Postdoctoral Research Fellow – Skeletal Muscle and Tendon Connective Matrix Biology and Mechanotransduction (Weill Cornell Medical College)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Cell-Based Cardiac Regeneration (Karolinska Institutet)

Canada Excellence Research Chair – Cardiac Regeneration (University of Toronto)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Human Skeletal Muscle Disease Modeling and Regeneration (Duke University)

Postdoctoral Fellow – hiPSC Based Cardiac Regeneration (Duke University)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Cardiovascular Tissue Engineering (Stanford University)

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