title: Developmentally regulated expression and localization of fibroblast growth factor receptors in the human muscle.
abstract: Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are believed to play a key role in tissue differentiation and maturation. Thus, the expression of the four members of the high-affinity tyrosine kinase FGF receptor family (FGFRs) and of the low-affinity heparan sulphate proteoglycan binding sites, syndecan-1 and perlecan, was studied in the human skeletal muscle during development. Northern blot analysis demonstrated a developmentally regulated expression of the mRNAs for FGFR-1, FGFR-3, FGFR-4, whereas only traces of FGFR-2 mRNA were found. Each receptor type had a different developmental pattern, suggesting an independent regulation. Signal for FGFR-3 was retained only in the adult muscle. Among the low-affinity FGF binding sites, perlecan was absent, whereas RNA transcript for syndecan-1 peaked at week 13 of gestation, after which a significant decrease was observed. Immunohistochemistry for FGFRs revealed that their localization changed with muscle maturation. At early embryonic stages, FGFR-3 and FGFR-4 had a scattered distribution in the tissue, and FGFR-1 was found on myotube and myofiber plasma membranes. At later stages, FGFR-1 positivity decreased and was found in a few areas of the muscle, FGFR-3 was concentrated in the nuclei of some, but not all, muscle fibers, and FGFR-4 maintained an association with plasma membrane. In adult tissue, weak positivity for FGFR-3 and FGFR-4 was observed in the connective tissue only. When immunocytochemistry was performed on human fetal myoblasts in culture, confocal microscope analysis revealed a nonhomogeneous cell membrane distribution of FGFRs. Taken together, the data strongly suggest that developmentally regulated expression and cell distribution of FGFRs play a role during muscle maturation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cytomorphology, School of Medicine, Cagliari, Italy.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Sogos
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Balaci
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Ennas
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dell'era
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Presta
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gremo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D019812:Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycans; D006497:Heparan Sulfate / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000196:embryology / Q000378:metabolism*; D009218:Myosins / Q000378:metabolism; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D011509:Proteoglycans / Q000378:metabolism*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D051496:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 1; D051498:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 3; D051499:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 4; D017468:Receptors, Fibroblast Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism*; D053668:Syndecan-1; D053667:Syndecans; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D019812:Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycans; D006497:Heparan Sulfate; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D009218:Myosins; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D011509:Proteoglycans; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D051496:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 1; D051498:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 3; D051499:Receptor, Fibroblast Growth Factor, Type 4; D017468:Receptors, Fibroblast Growth Factor; D053668:Syndecan-1; D053667:Syndecans; C508241:SDC1 protein, human; C071927:perlecan; C496348:FGFR1 protein, human; C496365:FGFR3 protein, human; C496371:FGFR4 protein, human