|
Novel protein could reverse severe muscle wasting in disease, aging and trauma
[EurekaAlert] When we tear a muscle " stem cells within it repair the problem. We can see this occurring not only in severe muscle wasting diseases such as muscular dystrophy and in war veterans who survive catastrophic limb injuries, but also in our day to day lives when we pull a muscle.Also when we age and become frail we lose much of our muscle and our stem cells don't seem to be able to work as well as we age. These muscle stem cells are invisible engines that drive the tissue's growth and repair after such injuries. But growing these cells in the lab and then using them to therapeutically replace damaged muscle has been frustratingly difficult. Researchers at the Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia have discovered a factor that triggers these muscle stem cells to proliferate and heal. In a mouse model of severe muscle damage, injections of this naturally occurring protein led to the complete regeneration of muscle and the return of normal movement after severe muscle trauma. The research led by Professor Peter Currie, Director of Monash University's Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute, is published today in Nature. The scientists studied the regeneration of skeletal muscle in zebrafish, fast becoming the go-to animal model for the study of stem cell regeneration because but fish are quick to reproduce, easier to experimentally manipulate, and share at least 70 percent of its genes with humans. It is also transparent which allows the scientists to witness the actual regeneration in living muscle. Posted by: Besoeker 2021-02-13 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=594259 |