Proteomics of skeletal muscle differentiation, neuromuscular disorders and fiber aging

Abstract

Skeletal muscle fibers are the most abundant cellular structure in the human body. Altered neuromuscular activity, traumatic injury or genetic abnormalities have profound effects on muscle integrity, tissue mass, fiber type distribution, metabolic integration and contractile function. The recent application of mass spectrometry-based proteomics has decisively advanced our molecular understanding of numerous physiological adaptations in healthy muscle and pathophysiological mechanisms associated with major muscle diseases. Skeletal muscle proteomics promises to play a major role in the establishment of a disease-specific biomarker signature for the major classes of neuromuscular disorders. New muscle markers will be crucial for the development of improved diagnostics, the monitoring of disease progression, evaluation of drug action and the identification of novel therapeutic targets.

Keywords::

• muscle aging
• muscle differentiation
• muscle transformation
• muscular atrophy
• muscular dystrophy
• skeletal muscle proteomics

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank past and present collaborators and members of the NUIM Muscle Biology Laboratory for all their help and encouragement to establish a muscle proteomics unit in NUI Maynooth over the last few years.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

This study was supported by grants from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI-04/IN3/B614), the European Commission (RTN2–2001–00337), the Irish Health Research Board (HRB-RP01/99, HRB-RP03/2001 HRB-RP/2005/3, HRB-RP/2008/1, HRB-EQ/2003/3 and HRB-EQ/2004/2), the Higher Education Authority (HEA-RERGS-07-NUIM) and Muscular Dystrophy Ireland. The author has no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.