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The neuromuscular junction is a focal point of mTORC1 signaling in sarcopenia.

ABSTRACT: With human median lifespan extending into the 80s in many developed countries, the societal burden of age-related muscle loss (sarcopenia) is increasing. mTORC1 promotes skeletal muscle hypertrophy, but also drives organismal aging. Here, we address the question of whether mTORC1 activation or suppression is beneficial for skeletal muscle aging. We demonstrate that chronic mTORC1 inhibition with rapamycin is overwhelmingly, but not entirely, positive for aging mouse skeletal muscle, while genetic, muscle fiber-specific activation of mTORC1 is sufficient to induce molecular signatures of sarcopenia. Through integration of comprehensive physiological and extensive gene expression profiling in young and old mice, and following genetic activation or pharmacological inhibition of mTORC1, we establish the phenotypically-backed, mTORC1-focused, multi-muscle gene expression atlas, SarcoAtlas (https://sarcoatlas.scicore.unibas.ch/), as a user-friendly gene discovery tool. We uncover inter-muscle divergence in the primary drivers of sarcopenia and identify the neuromuscular junction as a focal point of mTORC1-driven muscle aging.

SUBMITTER: Ham DJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7481251 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Purpose: Despite demonstrating that the overall effect of long-term rapamycin-treatment is overwhelmingly positive in aging skeletal muscle, we observed muscle-specificity in the responsiveness to rapamycin, leading us to hypothesize that the primary drivers of age-related muscle loss and therefore effective intervention strategies may differ between muscles. To address this question and dissect the key signaling nodes associated with mTORC1-driven muscle aging, we created a comprehensive multi-muscle gene expression atlas in adult, sarcopenic and rapamycin-treated mice using RNA-seq. Methods: To examine the impact of long-term rapamycin treatment, male C57BL/6 mice were fed encapsulated rapamycin incorporated into a standardized AIN93M diet at 42 ppm (i.e. mg per kg of food), corresponding to a dose of ~4 mg·kg-1·day-1, from 15- to 30-months of age. This dose of rapamycin has been shown to extend lifespan maximally in male C57BL/6 mice. We performed RNA-seq on gastrocnemius (GAS), tibialis anterior (TA), triceps brachii (TRI) and soleus (SOL) muscles from each of six mice for 10m, 30m and 30mRM groups. The four muscle types were chosen to encompass fore- and hindlimb locations (e.g. TRI and GAS); slow and fast contraction properties (e.g. SOL and GAS); anterior and posterior positioning (e.g. TA and GAS) and the extent of protection by rapamycin (TA and TRI: protected; SOL: partiallly protected; GAS: not protected). Results: Age-related gene expression changes were remarkably consistent across the four different muscles, varying only in magnitude. Despite having the smallest age-related muscle loss of the four muscles, TA had the strongest age-related gene expression response which was associated with an increased reinnervation response. Despite the strong between-muscle commonality of age-related changes, gene expression responses to prolonged rapamycin treatment differed substantially between muscles. Rapamycin partially reversed many age-related changes in mRNA expression in the TA and TRI, but not in SOL or GAS muscle. Principle component analysis (PCA) showed that rapamycin had common 'anti-aging' effects on all muscles, while also exerting muscle-specific pro-aging effects on muscles not protected by rapamycin. Conclusions: Sustained, muscle fiber-specific mTORC1 activity drives sarcopenia-like gene expression programs, and the hyperactive mTORC1 seen in sarcopenic muscle may therefore contribute to sarcopenia.

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The neuromuscular junction is a focal point of mTORC1 signaling in sarcopenia.

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