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19 pages, 6735 KiB

Open AccessArticle

miR-103-3p Regulates the Differentiation and Autophagy of Myoblasts by Targeting MAP4

by Xianxian Zhang, Shihui Huang, Xi Niu, Sheng Li, Jiafu Wang and Xueqin Ran

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(4), 4130; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24044130 - 18 Feb 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1849

Abstract

Skeletal muscle is the most abundant tissue in mammals, and myogenesis and differentiation require a series of regulatory factors such as microRNAs (miRNAs). In this study, we found that miR-103-3p was highly expressed in the skeletal muscle of mice, and the effects of [...] Read more.

Skeletal muscle is the most abundant tissue in mammals, and myogenesis and differentiation require a series of regulatory factors such as microRNAs (miRNAs). In this study, we found that miR-103-3p was highly expressed in the skeletal muscle of mice, and the effects of miR-103-3p on skeletal muscle development were explored using myoblast C2C12 cells as a model. The results showed that miR-103-3p could significantly reduce myotube formation and restrain the differentiation of C2C12 cells. Additionally, miR-103-3p obviously prevented the production of autolysosomes and inhibited the autophagy of C2C12 cells. Moreover, bioinformatics prediction and dual-luciferase reporter assays confirmed that miR-103-3p could directly target the microtubule-associated protein 4 (MAP4) gene. The effects of MAP4 on the differentiation and autophagy of myoblasts were then elucidated. MAP4 promoted both the differentiation and autophagy of C2C12 cells, which was contrary to the role of miR-103-3p. Further research revealed that MAP4 colocalized with LC3 in C2C12 cell cytoplasm, and the immunoprecipitation assay showed that MAP4 interacted with autophagy marker LC3 to regulate the autophagy of C2C12 cells. Overall, these results indicated that miR-103-3p regulated the differentiation and autophagy of myoblasts by targeting MAP4. These findings enrich the understanding of the regulatory network of miRNAs involved in the myogenesis of skeletal muscle. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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14 pages, 2282 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Novel in Duck Myoblasts: The Transcription Factor Retinoid X Receptor Alpha (RXRA) Inhibits Lipid Accumulation by Promoting CD36 Expression

by Ziyi Pan, Xingyong Chen, Dongsheng Wu, Xuewen Li, Weifeng Gao, Guoyu Li, Guoqing Du, Cheng Zhang, Sihua Jin and Zhaoyu Geng

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(2), 1180; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24021180 - 7 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1689

Abstract

Retinoid X receptor alpha (RXRA) is a well-characterized factor that regulates lipid metabolism; however, the regulatory mechanism in muscle cells of poultry is still unknown. The overexpression and the knockdown of RXRA in myoblasts (CS2 cells), RT-PCR, and western blotting were used to [...] Read more.

Retinoid X receptor alpha (RXRA) is a well-characterized factor that regulates lipid metabolism; however, the regulatory mechanism in muscle cells of poultry is still unknown. The overexpression and the knockdown of RXRA in myoblasts (CS2 cells), RT-PCR, and western blotting were used to detect the expression levels of genes and proteins related to PPAR-signaling pathways. Intracellular triglycerides (TGs), cholesterol (CHOL), and nonesterified free fatty acids (NEFAs) were detected by the Elisa kit. Fat droplets were stained with Oil Red O. The double-fluorescein reporter gene and chromatin immunoprecipitation (CHIP) were used to verify the relationship between RXRA and candidate target genes. The RXRA gene was highly expressed in duck breast muscle, and its mRNA and its protein were reduced during the differentiation of CS2 cells. The CS2 cells, with the overexpression of RXRA, showed reduced content in TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets and upregulated the mRNA expression of CD36, ACSL1, and PPARG genes and the protein expression of CD36 and PPARG. The knockdown of RXRA expression in CS2 cells enhanced the content of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets and downregulated the mRNA and protein expression of CD36, ACLS1, ELOVL6, and PPARG. The overexpression of the RXRA gene, the activity of the double-luciferase reporter gene of the wild-type CD36 promoter was higher than that of the mutant type. RXRA bound to −860/−852 nt, −688/−680 nt, and −165/−157 nt at the promoter region of CD36. Moreover, the overexpression of CD36 in CS2 cells could suppress the content of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets, while the knockdown expression of CD36 increased the content of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and lipid droplets. In this study, the transcription factor, RXRA, inhibited the accumulation of TGs, CHOL, NEFAs, and fat droplets in CS2 cells by promoting CD36 expression. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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11 pages, 3100 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Knockdown of Tet2 Inhibits the Myogenic Differentiation of Chicken Myoblasts Induced by Ascorbic Acid

by Yinglin Lu, Kai Shi, Haobin Wang, Heng Cao, Fan Li, Jing Zhou, Minli Yu and Debing Yu

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(22), 13758; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms232213758 - 9 Nov 2022

Viewed by 1250

Abstract

Ascorbic acid (also called Vitamin C, VC) strengthens the function of Tets families and directly increases DNA demethylation level to affect myogenic differentiation. However, the precise regulatory mechanism of DNA methylation in chicken myogenesis remains unclear. Results of present study showed that the [...] Read more.

Ascorbic acid (also called Vitamin C, VC) strengthens the function of Tets families and directly increases DNA demethylation level to affect myogenic differentiation. However, the precise regulatory mechanism of DNA methylation in chicken myogenesis remains unclear. Results of present study showed that the mRNA expression of MyoD significantly decreased and MyoG and MyHC increased in myoblasts treated with 5 μM 5-azacytidine (5-AZA) and 5 μM VC (p < 0.05). Results also indicated the formation of myotubes was induced by 5-AZA or VC, but this effect was attenuated after knockdown of Tet2. In addition, the protein expression of TET2, DESMIN and MyHC was remarkable increased by the addition of 5-AZA or VC, and the upregulation was inhibited after knockdown of Tet2 (p < 0.05). DNA dot blot and immunofluorescence staining results suggested that the level of 5hmC was significantly increased when treated with 5-AZA or VC, even by Tet2 knockdown (p < 0.05). Moreover, 5-AZA and VC reduced the level of dimethylation of lysine 9 (H3K9me2) and trimethylation of lysine 27 of histone 3 (H3K27me3), and this inhibitory effect was eliminated after Tet2 knockdown (p < 0.05). These data indicated that Tet2 knockdown antagonized the increased levels of 5hmC and H3K27me3 induced by 5-AZA and VC, and eventually reduced myotube formation by modulating the expression of genes involved in myogenic differentiation. This study provides insights that epigenetic regulators play essential roles in mediating the myogenic program of chicken myoblasts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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22 pages, 3642 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Neuronal Agrin Promotes Proliferation of Primary Human Myoblasts in an Age-Dependent Manner

by Katarina Gros, Urška Matkovič, Giulia Parato, Katarina Miš, Elisa Luin, Annalisa Bernareggi, Marina Sciancalepore, Tomaž Marš, Paola Lorenzon and Sergej Pirkmajer

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(19), 11784; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms231911784 - 4 Oct 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2364

Abstract

Neuronal agrin, a heparan sulphate proteoglycan secreted by the α-motor neurons, promotes the formation and maintenance of the neuromuscular junction by binding to Lrp4 and activating muscle-specific kinase (MuSK). Neuronal agrin also promotes myogenesis by enhancing differentiation and maturation of myotubes, but its [...] Read more.

Neuronal agrin, a heparan sulphate proteoglycan secreted by the α-motor neurons, promotes the formation and maintenance of the neuromuscular junction by binding to Lrp4 and activating muscle-specific kinase (MuSK). Neuronal agrin also promotes myogenesis by enhancing differentiation and maturation of myotubes, but its effect on proliferating human myoblasts, which are often considered to be unresponsive to agrin, remains unclear. Using primary human myoblasts, we determined that neuronal agrin induced transient dephosphorylation of ERK1/2, while c-Abl, STAT3, and focal adhesion kinase were unresponsive. Gene silencing of Lrp4 and MuSK markedly reduced the BrdU incorporation, suggesting the functional importance of the Lrp4/MuSK complex for myoblast proliferation. Acute and chronic treatments with neuronal agrin increased the proliferation of human myoblasts in old donors, but they did not affect the proliferation of myoblasts in young donors. The C-terminal fragment of agrin which lacks the Lrp4-binding site and cannot activate MuSK had a similar age-dependent effect, indicating that the age-dependent signalling pathways activated by neuronal agrin involve the Lrp4/MuSK receptor complex as well as an Lrp4/MuSK-independent pathway which remained unknown. Collectively, our results highlight an age-dependent role for neuronal agrin in promoting the proliferation of human myoblasts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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22 pages, 26340 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Morphological and Molecular Responses of Lateolabrax maculatus Skeletal Muscle Cells to Different Temperatures

by Jingru Zhang, Haishen Wen, Xin Qi, Yonghang Zhang, Ximeng Dong, Kaiqiang Zhang, Meizhao Zhang, Jifang Li and Yun Li

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(17), 9812; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23179812 - 29 Aug 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1818

Abstract

Temperature strongly modulates muscle development and growth in ectothermic teleosts; however, the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. In this study, primary cultures of skeletal muscle cells of Lateolabrax maculatus were conducted and reared at different temperatures (21, 25, and 28 °C) in both [...] Read more.

Temperature strongly modulates muscle development and growth in ectothermic teleosts; however, the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. In this study, primary cultures of skeletal muscle cells of Lateolabrax maculatus were conducted and reared at different temperatures (21, 25, and 28 °C) in both the proliferation and differentiation stages. CCK-8, EdU, wound scratch and nuclear fusion index assays revealed that the proliferation, myogenic differentiation, and migration processes of skeletal muscle cells were significantly accelerated as the temperature raises. Based on the GO, GSEA, and WGCNA, higher temperature (28 °C) induced genes involved in HSF1 activation, DNA replication, and ECM organization processes at the proliferation stage, as well as HSF1 activation, calcium activity regulation, myogenic differentiation, and myoblast fusion, and sarcomere assembly processes at the differentiation stage. In contrast, lower temperature (21 °C) increased the expression levels of genes associated with DNA damage, DNA repair and apoptosis processes at the proliferation stage, and cytokine signaling and neutrophil degranulation processes at the differentiation stage. Additionally, we screened several hub genes regulating myogenesis processes. Our results could facilitate the understanding of the regulatory mechanism of temperature on fish skeletal muscle growth and further contribute to utilizing rational management strategies and promoting organism growth and development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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15 pages, 4117 KiB

Open AccessArticle

PPARGC1A Is a Moderator of Skeletal Muscle Development Regulated by miR-193b-3p

by Manting Ma, Bolin Cai, Shaofen Kong, Zhen Zhou, Jing Zhang, Xiquan Zhang and Qinghua Nie

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(17), 9575; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23179575 - 24 Aug 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 1892

Abstract

Meat production performance is one of the most important factors in determining the economic value of poultry. Myofiber is the basic unit of skeletal muscle, and its physical and chemical properties determine the meat quality of livestock and poultry to a certain extent. [...] Read more.

Meat production performance is one of the most important factors in determining the economic value of poultry. Myofiber is the basic unit of skeletal muscle, and its physical and chemical properties determine the meat quality of livestock and poultry to a certain extent. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-alpha (PPARGC1A) as a transcriptional coactivator has been found to be widely involved in a series of biological processes. However, PPARGC1A is still poorly understood in chickens. In this manuscript, we reported that PPARGC1A was highly expressed in slow-twitch myofibers. PPARGC1A facilitated mitochondrial biogenesis and regulated skeletal muscle metabolism by mediating the flux of glycolysis and the TCA cycle. Gain- and loss-of-function analyses revealed that PPARGC1A promoted intramuscular fatty acid oxidation, drove the transformation of fast-twitch to slow-twitch myofibers, and increased chicken skeletal muscle mass. Mechanistically, the expression level of PPARGC1A is regulated by miR-193b-3p. Our findings help to understand the genetic regulation of skeletal muscle development and provide a molecular basis for further research on the antagonism of skeletal muscle development and fat deposition in chickens. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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19 pages, 3029 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Cultured Myoblasts Derived from Rat Soleus Muscle Show Altered Regulation of Proliferation and Myogenesis during the Course of Mechanical Unloading

by Margarita Y. Komarova, Sergey V. Rozhkov, Oksana A. Ivanova, Olga V. Turtikova, Timur M. Mirzoev, Renata I. Dmitrieva, Boris S. Shenkman and Natalia A. Vilchinskaya

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(16), 9150; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23169150 - 15 Aug 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1693

Abstract

The structure and function of soleus muscle fibers undergo substantial remodeling under real or simulated microgravity conditions. However, unloading-induced changes in the functional activity of skeletal muscle primary myoblasts remain poorly studied. The purpose of our study was to investigate how short-term and [...] Read more.

The structure and function of soleus muscle fibers undergo substantial remodeling under real or simulated microgravity conditions. However, unloading-induced changes in the functional activity of skeletal muscle primary myoblasts remain poorly studied. The purpose of our study was to investigate how short-term and long-term mechanical unloading would affect cultured myoblasts derived from rat soleus muscle. Mechanical unloading was simulated by rat hindlimb suspension model (HS). Myoblasts were purified from rat soleus at basal conditions and after 1, 3, 7, and 14 days of HS. Myoblasts were expanded in vitro, and the myogenic nature was confirmed by their ability to differentiate as well as by immunostaining/mRNA expression of myogenic markers. The proliferation activity at different time points after HS was analyzed, and transcriptome analysis was performed. We have shown that soleus-derived myoblasts differently respond to an early and later stage of HS. At the early stage of HS, the proliferative activity of myoblasts was slightly decreased, and processes related to myogenesis activation were downregulated. At the later stage of HS, we observed a decrease in myoblast proliferative potential and spontaneous upregulation of the pro-myogenic program. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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15 pages, 9994 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Unique Features of River Lamprey (Lampetra fluviatilis) Myogenesis

by Marta Migocka-Patrzałek, Roman Kujawa, Piotr Podlasz, Dorota Juchno, Katarzyna Haczkiewicz-Leśniak and Małgorzata Daczewska

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(15), 8595; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23158595 - 2 Aug 2022

Viewed by 1979

Abstract

The river lamprey (L. fluviatilis) is a representative of the ancestral jawless vertebrate group. We performed a histological analysis of trunk muscle fiber differentiation during embryonal, larval, and adult musculature development in this previously unstudied species. Investigation using light, transmission electron [...] Read more.

The river lamprey (L. fluviatilis) is a representative of the ancestral jawless vertebrate group. We performed a histological analysis of trunk muscle fiber differentiation during embryonal, larval, and adult musculature development in this previously unstudied species. Investigation using light, transmission electron (TEM), and confocal microscopy revealed that embryonal and larval musculature differs from adult muscle mass. Here, we present the morphological analysis of L. fluviatilis myogenesis, from unsegmented mesoderm through somite formation, and their differentiation into multinucleated muscle lamellae. Our analysis also revealed the presence of myogenic factors LfPax3/7 and Myf5 in the dermomyotome. In the next stages of development, two types of muscle lamellae can be distinguished: central surrounded by parietal. This pattern is maintained until adulthood, when parietal muscle fibers surround the central muscles on both sides. The two types show different morphological characteristics. Although lampreys are phylogenetically distant from jawed vertebrates, somite morphology, especially dermomyotome function, shows similarity. Here we demonstrate that somitogenesis is a conservative process among all vertebrates. We conclude that river lamprey myogenesis shares features with both ancestral and higher vertebrates. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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11 pages, 3468 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

miR-29c Increases Protein Synthesis in Skeletal Muscle Independently of AKT/mTOR

by Paula Ketilly Nascimento Alves, André Cruz, William J. Silva, Siegfried Labeit and Anselmo Sigari Moriscot

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(13), 7198; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23137198 - 28 Jun 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1939

Abstract

microRNAs negatively regulate gene expression by blocking translation or increasing mRNA degradation. In skeletal muscle, these molecules play important roles in adaptive responses, and ongoing investigations are necessary to understand the fine-tune regulation of skeletal muscle mass. Herein we showed that skeletal muscle [...] Read more.

microRNAs negatively regulate gene expression by blocking translation or increasing mRNA degradation. In skeletal muscle, these molecules play important roles in adaptive responses, and ongoing investigations are necessary to understand the fine-tune regulation of skeletal muscle mass. Herein we showed that skeletal muscle overexpression of miR-29c increased fiber size and force at 7 and 30 days after electrotransfer. At both time points, AKT/mTOR pathway components were downregulated, and, surprisingly, overall protein synthesis was strongly elevated at day 7, which normalized by day 30 after pCMVmiR-29c electrotransfer. These results indicate that miR-29c expression induces skeletal muscle hypertrophy and gain of function, which involves increased overall protein synthesis in spite of the deactivation of the AKT/mTOR pathway. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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17 pages, 3484 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 Enhances Myonuclear Transcription during Injury-Induced Muscle Regeneration

by Kole H. Buckley, Andrea L. Nestor-Kalinoski and Francis X. Pizza

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(13), 7028; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23137028 - 24 Jun 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1679

Abstract

The local inflammatory environment of injured skeletal muscle contributes to the resolution of the injury by promoting the proliferation of muscle precursor cells during the initial stage of muscle regeneration. However, little is known about the extent to which the inflammatory response influences [...] Read more.

The local inflammatory environment of injured skeletal muscle contributes to the resolution of the injury by promoting the proliferation of muscle precursor cells during the initial stage of muscle regeneration. However, little is known about the extent to which the inflammatory response influences the later stages of regeneration when newly formed (regenerating myofibers) are accumulating myonuclei and undergoing hypertrophy. Our prior work indicated that the inflammatory molecule ICAM-1 facilitates regenerating myofiber hypertrophy through a process involving myonuclear positioning and/or transcription. The present study tested the hypothesis that ICAM-1 enhances global transcription within regenerating myofibers by augmenting the transcriptional activity of myonuclei positioned in linear arrays (nuclear chains). We found that transcription in regenerating myofibers was ~2-fold higher in wild type compared with ICAM-1-/- mice at 14 and 28 days post-injury. This occurred because the transcriptional activity of individual myonuclei in nuclei chains, nuclear clusters, and a peripheral location were ~2-fold higher in wild type compared with ICAM-1-/- mice during regeneration. ICAM-1’s enhancement of transcription in nuclear chains appears to be an important driver of myofiber hypertrophy as it was statistically associated with an increase in myofiber size during regeneration. Taken together, our findings indicate that ICAM-1 facilitates myofiber hypertrophy after injury by enhancing myonuclear transcription. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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18 pages, 6778 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Identification of Robust and Key Differentially Expressed Genes during C2C12 Cell Myogenesis Based on Multiomics Data

by Song Zhang, Yuanyuan Zhang, Choulin Chen, Qingqing Hu, Yang Fu, Lingna Xu, Chao Wang and Yuwen Liu

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(11), 6002; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23116002 - 26 May 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3053

Abstract

Myogenesis is a central step in prenatal myofiber formation, postnatal myofiber hypertrophy, and muscle damage repair in adulthood. RNA-Seq technology has greatly helped reveal the molecular mechanism of myogenesis, but batch effects in different experiments inevitably lead to misinterpretation of differentially expressed genes [...] Read more.

Myogenesis is a central step in prenatal myofiber formation, postnatal myofiber hypertrophy, and muscle damage repair in adulthood. RNA-Seq technology has greatly helped reveal the molecular mechanism of myogenesis, but batch effects in different experiments inevitably lead to misinterpretation of differentially expressed genes (DEGs). We previously applied the robust rank aggregation (RRA) method to effectively circumvent batch effects across multiple RNA-Seq datasets from 3T3-L1 cells. Here, we also used the RRA method to integrate nine RNA-Seq datasets from C2C12 cells and obtained 3140 robust DEGs between myoblasts and myotubes, which were then validated with array expression profiles and H3K27ac signals. The upregulated robust DEGs were highly enriched in gene ontology (GO) terms related to muscle cell differentiation and development. Considering that the cooperative binding of transcription factors (TFs) to enhancers to regulate downstream gene expression is a classical epigenetic mechanism, differentially expressed TFs (DETFs) were screened, and potential novel myogenic factors (MAF, BCL6, and ESR1) with high connection degree in protein–protein interaction (PPI) network were presented. Moreover, KLF5 cooperatively binds with the three key myogenic factors (MYOD, MYOG, and MEF2D) in C2C12 cells. Motif analysis speculates that the binding of MYOD and MYOG is KLF5-independent, while MEF2D is KLF5-dependent. It was revealed that KLF5-binding sites could be exploited to filter redundant MYOD-, MYOG-, and MEF2D-binding sites to focus on key enhancers for myogenesis. Further functional annotation of KLF5-binding sites suggested that KLF5 may regulate myogenesis through the PI3K-AKt signaling pathway, Rap1 signaling pathway, and the Hippo signaling pathway. In general, our study provides a wealth of untapped candidate targets for myogenesis and contributes new insights into the core regulatory mechanisms of myogenesis relying on KLF5-binding signal. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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Review

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12 pages, 1431 KiB

Open AccessReview

Development and Regeneration of Muscle, Tendon, and Myotendinous Junctions in Striated Skeletal Muscle

by Masahito Yamamoto, Koji Sakiyama, Kei Kitamura, Yutaro Yamamoto, Takahiro Takagi, Sayo Sekiya, Genji Watanabe, Shuichiro Taniguchi, Yudai Ogawa, Satoshi Ishizuka, Yuki Sugiyama, Takeshi Takayama, Katsuhiko Hayashi, Wei-Jen Chang and Shinichi Abe

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(6), 3006; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23063006 - 10 Mar 2022

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 4682

Abstract

Owing to a rapid increase in aging population in recent years, the deterioration of motor function in older adults has become an important social problem, and several studies have aimed to investigate the mechanisms underlying muscle function decline. Furthermore, structural maintenance of the [...] Read more.

Owing to a rapid increase in aging population in recent years, the deterioration of motor function in older adults has become an important social problem, and several studies have aimed to investigate the mechanisms underlying muscle function decline. Furthermore, structural maintenance of the muscle–tendon–bone complexes in the muscle attachment sites is important for motor function, particularly for joints; however, the development and regeneration of these complexes have not been studied thoroughly and require further elucidation. Recent studies have provided insights into the roles of mesenchymal progenitors in the development and regeneration of muscles and myotendinous junctions. In particular, studies on muscles and myotendinous junctions have—through the use of the recently developed scRNA-seq—reported the presence of syncytia, thereby suggesting that fibroblasts may be transformed into myoblasts in a BMP-dependent manner. In addition, the high mobility group box 1—a DNA-binding protein found in nuclei—is reportedly involved in muscle regeneration. Furthermore, studies have identified several factors required for the formation of locomotor apparatuses, e.g., tenomodulin (Tnmd) and mohawk (Mkx), which are essential for tendon maturation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myoblast and Muscle Cell Genesis and Regeneration)

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