Overload-mediated skeletal muscle hypertrophy is not impaired by loss of myofiber STAT3

Although the signal pathways mediating muscle protein synthesis and degradation are well characterized, the transcriptional processes modulating skeletal muscle mass and adaptive growth are poorly understood. Recently, studies in mouse models of muscle wasting or acutely exercised human muscle have suggested a potential role for the transcription factor signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), in adaptive growth. Hence, in the present study we sought to define the contribution of STAT3 to skeletal muscle adaptive growth. In contrast to previous work, two different resistance exercise protocols did not change STAT3 phosphorylation in human skeletal muscle. To directly address the role of STAT3 in load-induced (i.e., adaptive) growth, we studied the anabolic effects of 14 days of synergist ablation (SA) in skeletal muscle-specific STAT3 knockout (mKO) mice and their floxed, wild-type (WT) littermates. Plantaris muscle weight and fiber area in the nonoperated leg (control; CON) was comparable between genotypes. As expected, SA significantly increased plantaris weight, muscle fiber cross-sectional area, and anabolic signaling in WT mice, although interestingly, this induction was not impaired in STAT3 mKO mice. Collectively, these data demonstrate that STAT3 is not required for overload-mediated hypertrophy in mouse skeletal muscle. </jats:p

Exercise and high-fat feeding remodel transcript-metabolite interactive networks in mouse skeletal muscle

Abstract Enhanced coverage and sensitivity of next-generation ‘omic’ platforms has allowed the characterization of gene, metabolite and protein responses in highly metabolic tissues, such as, skeletal muscle. A limitation, however, is the capability to determine interaction between dynamic biological networks. To address this limitation, we applied Weighted Analyte Correlation Network Analysis (WACNA) to RNA-seq and metabolomic datasets to identify correlated subnetworks of transcripts and metabolites in response to a high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity and/or exercise. HFD altered skeletal muscle lipid profiles and up-regulated genes involved in lipid catabolism, while decreasing 241 exercise-responsive genes related to skeletal muscle plasticity. WACNA identified the interplay between transcript and metabolite subnetworks linked to lipid metabolism, inflammation and glycerophospholipid metabolism that were associated with IL6, AMPK and PPAR signal pathways. Collectively, this novel experimental approach provides an integrative resource to study transcriptional and metabolic networks in skeletal muscle in the context of health and disease

Pyruvate suppresses PGC1α expression and substrate utilization despite increased respiratory chain content in C2C12 myotubes

Sodium pyruvate can increase mitochondrial biogenesis in C2C12 myoblasts in a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1α (PGC1α)-independent manner. The present study examined the effect of 72-h treatment with sodium pyruvate (5–50 mM) or sodium chloride (50 mM) as an osmotic control on the regulation of mitochondrial substrate metabolism and biogenesis in C2C12 myotubes. Pyruvate (50 mM) increased the levels of fatty acid oxidation enzymes (CD36, 61%, and β-oxidative enzyme 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, 54%) and the expression of cytochrome-c oxidase subunit I (220%) and cytochrome c (228%), consistent with its previous described role as a promoter of mitochondrial biogenesis. However, in contrast, pyruvate treatment reduced glucose transporter 4 (42%), phosphofructokinase (57%), and PGC1α (72%) protein content as well as PGC1α (48%) and PGC1β (122%) mRNA. The decrease in PGC1α was compensated for by an increase in the PGC1α-related coactivator (PRC; 187%). Pyruvate treatment reduced basal and insulin-stimulated glucose uptake (41% and 31%, respectively) and palmitate uptake and oxidation (24% and 31%, respectively). The addition of the pyruvate dehydrogenase activator dichloroacetate (DCA) and the TCA precursor glutamine increased PGC1α expression (368%) and returned PRC expression to basal. Glucose uptake increased by 4.2-fold with DCA and glutamine and palmitate uptake increased by 18%. Coupled to this adaptation was an 80% increase in oxygen consumption. The data suggest that supraphysiological doses of pyruvate decrease mitochondrial function despite limited biogenesis and that anaplerotic agents can reverse this effect

Rapamycin does not prevent increases in myofibrillar or mitochondrial protein synthesis following endurance exercise

The present study aimed to investigate the role of the mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) in the regulation of myofibrillar (MyoPS) and mitochondrial (MitoPS) protein synthesis following endurance exercise. Forty-two female C57BL/6 mice performed 1h of treadmill running (18mmin&minus;1; 5&deg; grade), 1h afteri.p.administration of rapamycin (1.5mg &middot; kg&minus;1) or vehicle. To quantify skeletal muscle protein fractional synthesis rates, a flooding dose (50mg &middot; kg&minus;1) ofl-[ring-13C6]phenylalanine was administered viai.p.injection. Blood and gastrocnemius muscle were collected in non-exercised control mice, as well as at 0.5, 3 and 6h after completing exercise (n=4 per time point). Skeletal muscle MyoPS and MitoPS were determined by measuring isotope incorporation in their respective protein pools. Activation of the mTORC1-signalling cascade was measured via direct kinase activity assay and immunoblotting, whereas genes related to mitochondrial biogenesis were measured via a quantitative RT-PCR. MyoPS increased rapidly in the vehicle group post-exercise and remained elevated for 6h, whereas this response was transiently blunted (30min post-exercise) by rapamycin. By contrast, MitoPS was unaffected by rapamycin, and was increased over the entire post-exercise recovery period in both groups (P&lt;0.05). Despite rapid increases in both MyoPS and MitoPS, mTORC1 activation was suppressed in both groups post-exercise for the entire 6h recovery period. Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-&gamma; coactivator-1&alpha;, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 and mitochondrial transcription factor A mRNA increased post-exercise (P&lt;0.05) and this response was augmented by rapamycin (P&lt;0.05). Collectively, these data suggest that endurance exercise stimulates MyoPS and MitoPS in skeletal muscle independently of mTORC1 activation

The training stimulus experienced by the leg muscles during cycling in humans

Considerable variability exists between people in their health- and performance-related adaptations to conventional endurance training. We hypothesized that some of this variability might be due to differences in the training stimulus received by the working muscles. In 71 young sedentary women we observed large variations in the ratio of one-leg cycling muscle aerobic capacity (V(O2peak)) to two-leg cycling whole-body maximal oxygen uptake (V(O2max); Ratio(1:2); range 0.58-0.96). The variability in Ratio(1:2) was primarily due to differences between people in one-leg V(O2peak) (r = 0.71, P < 0.0005) and was not related to two-leg V(O2max) (r = 0.15, P = 0.209). Magnetic resonance imaging (n = 30) and muscle biopsy sampling (n = 20) revealed that one-leg V(O2peak) was mainly determined by muscle volume (r = 0.73, P < 0.0005) rather than muscle fibre type or oxidative capacity. A high one-leg V(O2peak) was associated with favourable lipoprotein profiles (P = 0.033, n = 24) but this was not the case for two-leg V(O2max). Calculations based on these data suggest that conventional two-leg exercise at 70% V(O2max) requires subjects with the lowest Ratio(1:2) to work their legs at 60% of single-leg V(O2peak), whilst those with the highest Ratio(1:2) work their legs at only 36% of maximum. It was concluded that endurance training carried out according to current guidelines will result in highly variable training stimuli for the leg muscles and variable magnitudes of adaptation. These conclusions have implications for the prescription of exercise to improve health and for investigations into the genetic basis of muscle adaptations