title: Are cultured human myotubes far from home?
abstract: Satellite cells can be isolated from skeletal muscle biopsies, activated to proliferating myoblasts and differentiated into multinuclear myotubes in culture. These cell cultures represent a model system for intact human skeletal muscle and can be modulated ex vivo. The advantages of this system are that the most relevant genetic background is available for the investigation of human disease (as opposed to rodent cell cultures), the extracellular environment can be precisely controlled and the cells are not immortalized, thereby offering the possibility of studying innate characteristics of the donor. Limitations in differentiation status (fiber type) of the cells and energy metabolism can be improved by proper treatment, such as electrical pulse stimulation to mimic exercise. This review focuses on the way that human myotubes can be employed as a tool for studying metabolism in skeletal muscles, with special attention to changes in muscle energy metabolism in obesity and type 2 diabetes.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Laboratory Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, Oslo, Norway, vigdis.aas@hioa.no.
authors.forename: Vigdis
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Aas
authors.forename: Siril S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Bakke
authors.forename: Yuan Z
authors.initials: YZ
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.forename: Eili Tranheim
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Kase
authors.forename: Jørgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jensen
authors.forename: Sudip
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bajpeyi
authors.forename: G Hege
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Thoresen
authors.forename: Arild C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Rustan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D018485:Muscle Fibers, Skeletal / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D009765:Obesity / Q000378:metabolism; D032496:Satellite Cells, Skeletal Muscle / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*