title: The critical role of myostatin in differentiation of sheep myoblasts.
abstract: Myostatin [MSTN, also known as growth differentiation factor 8 (GDF8)], is an inhibitor of skeletal muscle growth. Blockade of MSTN function has been reported to result in increased muscle mass in mice. However, its role in myoblast differentiation in farm animals has not been determined. In the present study, we sought to determine the role of MSTN in the differentiation of primary sheep myoblasts. We found that ectopic overexpression of MSTN resulted in lower fusion index in sheep myoblasts, which indicated the repression of myoblast differentiation. This phenotypic change was reversed by shRNA knockdown of the ectopically expressed MSTN in the cells. In contrast, shRNA knockdown of the endogenous MSTN resulted in induction of myogenic differentiation. Additional studies revealed that the induction of differentiation by knocking down the ectopically or endogenously expressed MSTN was accompanied by up-regulation of MyoD and myogenin, and down-regulation of Smad3. Our results demonstrate that MSTN plays critical role in myoblast differentiation in sheep, analogous to that in mice. This study also suggests that shRNA knockdown of MSTN could be a potentially promising approach to improve sheep muscle growth, so as to increase meat productivity.
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science and Technology, Xinjiang University, Urumqi, China.
authors.forename: Chenxi
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Wenrong
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xuemei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Sangang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Juncheng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Yubin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.forename: Mingjun
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D055785:Gene Knockdown Techniques; D057809:HEK293 Cells; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D024510:Muscle Development / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D017570:MyoD Protein / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D032446:Myoblasts / Q000166:cytology*; D055435:Myostatin / Q000502:physiology*; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering / Q000235:genetics; D012756:Sheep / Q000502:physiology*; D051900:Smad3 Protein / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015854:Up-Regulation
chemical_list: D017570:MyoD Protein; D055435:Myostatin; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; D051900:Smad3 Protein