How to Speed ​​Up Muscle Recovery

A study led by researchers at the University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering offers new insights for developing therapies for muscle disease, injury and atrophy. By studying how different pluripotent stem cell lines build muscle, researchers have discovered for the first time how epigenetic mechanisms can be activated to accelerate the growth of muscle cells at different stages of stem cell differentiation.

The findings were published in March 17 Science Advances

“Stem cell-based approaches that have the potential to promote muscle regeneration and growth would improve the quality of life for many people, from children born with congenital muscle disease to those who lose muscle mass and strength with aging,” said Shankar Subramaniam , senior professor of bioengineering, computer science and engineering, and cellular and molecular medicine at UC San Diego and lead author of the study. “Here we discovered that specific factors and mechanisms can be activated by external means to promote rapid growth.”

The researchers used three different human-induced pluripotent stem cell lines and studied how they differentiate into muscle cells. Of the three, one cell line grew to muscle the fastest. The researchers looked at what factors made this line different from the rest, then brought those factors into the other lines to see if they could speed up muscle growth.

They found that activating different epigenetic mechanisms at different times accelerated muscle growth in the “slower” pluripotent stem cell lines. These include inhibiting a gene called ZIC3 at the beginning of the differentiation, followed by adding proteins called beta-catenin transcriptional cofactors later in the growth process.

“An important point here is that all pluripotent stem cells do not have the same regenerative capacity,” said Subramaniam. “Identifying factors that stimulate these cells for specific regeneration will go a long way in regenerative medicine.”

Next, the team will investigate therapeutic intervention, such as drugs, that can stimulate and accelerate muscle growth at various stages of differentiation in human-induced pluripotent stem cells. They will also see whether implanting specific pluripotent stem cells into dystrophic muscles can stimulate new muscle growth in animals. Ultimately, they would like to see if such a stem cell-based approach could regenerate the muscles of aging people.