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Regulation of STARS and its downstream target suggest a novel pathway involved in human skeletal hypertrophy and atrophy
journal contribution
posted on 2009-04-15, 00:00 authored by Severine LamonSeverine Lamon, Marita Wallace, B Leger, Aaron RussellAaron RussellSkeletal muscle atrophy is a severe consequence of ageing, neurological disorders and chronic disease. Identifying the intracellular signalling pathways controlling changes in skeletal muscle size and function is vital for the future development of potential therapeutic interventions. Striated activator of Rho signalling (STARS), an actin-binding protein, has been implicated in rodent cardiac hypertrophy; however its role in human skeletal muscle has not been determined. This study aimed to establish if STARS, as well as its downstream signalling targets, RhoA, myocardin-related transcription factors A and B (MRTF-A/B) and serum response factor (SRF), were increased and decreased respectively, in human quadriceps muscle biopsies taken after 8 weeks of both hypertrophy-stimulating resistance training and atrophy-stimulating de-training. The mRNA levels of the SRF target genes involved in muscle structure, function and growth, such as α-actin, myosin heavy chain IIa (MHCIIa) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), were also measured. Following resistance training, STARS, MRTF-A, MRTF-B, SRF, α-actin, MHCIIa and IGF-1 mRNA, as well as RhoA and nuclear SRF protein levels were all significantly increased by between 1.25- and 3.6-fold. Following the de-training period all measured targets, except for RhoA, which remained elevated, returned to base-line. Our results show that the STARS signalling pathway is responsive to changes in skeletal muscle loading and appears to play a role in both human skeletal muscle hypertrophy and atrophy.
History
Journal
Journal of physiologyVolume
587Issue
8Pagination
1795 - 1803Publisher
Wiley-BlackwellLocation
Oxford, EnglandISSN
0022-3751eISSN
1469-7793Language
engPublication classification
C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal; C Journal articleCopyright notice
2009, Wiley-BlackwellUsage metrics
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