Article
Immunology
Heyu Zhang, Jiajia Yue, Chun Lian, Youming Long, Dan He
Summary: The study found that GAD65 antibodies are associated with not only encephalitis, cerebellar ataxia, or stiff-person syndrome caused by decreased GABAergic transmission, but also diplopia and ptosis. Therefore, patients with extraocular muscle paralysis without pathogenic antibodies directed against the components of neuromuscular junctions should be paid more attention.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ophthalmology
Jing-Xia Liu, Fatima Pedrosa Domellof
Summary: The study investigated the cytoskeletal composition of myotendinous junctions (MTJs) in human extraocular muscles (EOMs) and found significant differences compared to MTJs in limb muscles, suggesting specific adaptations in EOMs to meet their functional requirements.
INVESTIGATIVE OPHTHALMOLOGY & VISUAL SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Lei Bai, Wen-Yo Tu, Yatao Xiao, Kejing Zhang, Chengyong Shen
Summary: This study investigates the distinctive chromatin structure and gene expression in the synaptic nuclei of neuromuscular junctions (NMJs). Motoneuron innervation is found to regulate gene expressions in multinucleated myofibers through epigenetic regulation. This research demonstrates the importance of nerve-controlled chromatin structure and muscle gene expression in maintaining normal muscle function.
CELL AND BIOSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Developmental Biology
Brielle Bjorke, Katherine G. Weller, Lauren E. Jones, G. Eric Robinson, Michelle Vesser, Lisheng Chen, Philip J. Gage, Thomas W. Gould, Grant S. Mastick
Summary: Muscle function relies on correct innervation by motor nerves, which pause and branch as they approach muscle targets. The study of the oculomotor nerve in mouse embryos found that Pitx2 function and Myf5-expressing cells play crucial roles in nerve growth pause and muscle precursor development, respectively.
DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Anastasiia V. Sokolova, Alisa P. Domnina, Viacheslav M. Mikhailov
Summary: In this study, nonmyeloablative bone marrow cell transplantation was investigated as a method for treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy(DMD). The results showed that the transplantation improved muscle function and structure of mdx mice, offering a potential treatment approach for DMD patients.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Andrei N. Tsentsevitsky, Chulpan R. Gafurova, Kamilla A. Mukhutdinova, Arthur R. Giniatullin, Nikita S. Fedorov, Artem I. Malomouzh, Alexey M. Petrov
Summary: In this study on the diaphragm neuromuscular junctions of mice, it was found that the release of neurotransmitters is regulated by secretory sphingomyelinases (SMases), which enhance mobilization of synaptic vesicles and facilitate full fusion mode of exocytosis while suppressing neurotransmitter transmission when acting on vesicular membranes.
Article
Cell Biology
Sydney V. Doss, Sebastien Barbat-Artigas, Mikayla Lopes, Bhola Shankar Pradhan, Tomasz J. Proszynski, Richard Robitaille, Gregorio Valdez
Summary: Lynx1 is expressed in skeletal muscles and concentrates at NMJs. It interacts with muscle-specific nAChR subunits and affects the response of skeletal muscles to cholinergic transmission and their contractile properties. Loss of Lynx1 has a minor role in the structural development of NMJs and may primarily function to maintain the structure and function of adult and aging NMJs.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Binney Sharma, Avishek Roy, Trina Sengupta, Lal Chandra Vishwakarma, Anuraag Singh, Ritesh Netam, Tapas Chandra Nag, Nasreen Akhtar, Hruda Nanda Mallick
Summary: Sleep has an impact on both brain function and neuromuscular junction morphology and neurochemistry.
Article
Cell Biology
Lea Gessler, Christopher Kurtek, Mira Merholz, Yongzhi Jian, Said Hashemolhosseini
Summary: Canonical Wnt signaling plays an important role in skeletal muscle cell biology, but its exact contribution to myogenesis and neuromuscular junctions (NMJ) is still debated. This study investigates the role of the co-receptors Lrp5 and Lrp6 in muscle cells using conditional knockout mice. The findings suggest that these receptors have divergent roles in muscle fiber type distribution, canonical Wnt signaling activity, expression of myogenic marker genes, NMJ phenotype, and neuromuscular transmission.
Article
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Marc-Adrien Hostin, Augustin C. Ogier, Constance P. Michel, Yann Le Fur, Maxime Guye, Shahram Attarian, Etienne Fortanier, Marc-Emmanuel Bellemare, David Bendahan
Summary: Deep learning methods have shown promising results in segmenting lower limb muscle MRIs of healthy individuals, but their performance on patients with neuromuscular disease (NMD) has not been adequately evaluated. This retrospective study aimed to assess the impact of fat infiltration on CNN segmentation of MRIs from NMD patients.
JOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING
(2023)
Article
Rehabilitation
Yiming Ma, Sonja de Groot, Ad Vink, Wouter Harmsen, Christof A. J. Smit, Janneke M. Stolwijk-Swuste, Peter J. M. Weijs, Thomas W. J. Janssen
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate the increase in energy expenditure using surface neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) for paralyzed lower-limb muscles and whether the number of activated muscles and duty cycle affect the potential increase. The results showed that energy expenditure during all NMES protocols was significantly higher than without NMES, with the highest increase for the protocol with more muscles activated and the duty cycle with a shorter rest period.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL MEDICINE & REHABILITATION
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Noah S. Armstrong, C. Andrew Frank
Summary: Synaptic homeostatic potentiation (PHP) is an important mechanism where presynaptic neurotransmitter release increases to counteract impairments in muscle transmitter receptors. In this study, the researchers investigated the role of the calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein phosphatase calcineurin and its regulator sarah (sra) in the expression of PHP at the Drosophila larval neuromuscular junction (NMJ) synapse. They found that dysregulation of sra in either the presynaptic or postsynaptic cell blocked PHP, and that tight regulation of calcineurin across multiple tissue types is necessary for stabilizing peripheral synaptic outputs.
FRONTIERS IN SYNAPTIC NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Yin Qin, Hui Chen, Xiaoying Liu, Jiwei Wu, Yinxin Zhang
Summary: This study compared the effects of whole-body electromyostimulation (WB-EMS) training and traditional resistance training on muscle strength and body composition in moderately trained males. The results showed that WB-EMS had similar effects to traditional training in moderately trained males, with the exception of a significantly greater increase in elbow flexor strength.
FRONTIERS IN PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Guoyan Zhou, Jiayu Zhou, Danli Wang, Shengbo Yang
Summary: The study revealed the distribution pattern of intramuscular nerves in Chinese head specimens, showing that each extraocular muscle can be divided into two neuromuscular compartments. This information can guide the selection of neuromuscular compartments during extraocular muscle transplantation and botulinum toxin A injections for the treatment of strabismus.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MORPHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Na Cao, Atsushi Sasaki, Akiko Yuasa, Milos R. Popovic, Matija Milosevic, Kimitaka Nakazawa
Summary: This study investigates whether cortical stimulation can affect the corticospinal excitability induced by neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES). The results show that combined facilitatory priming and NMES can induce long-lasting facilitation in the corticospinal system, while either intervention alone has no effect.
EXPERIMENTAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2022)