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Major advance in understanding muscle regeneration: Caspase 3 tackles Pax7 in a cellular game of Pac-Man
October 14, 2015
Stem cells control the growth and regeneration of skeletal muscle. In healthy muscle, stem cells can multiply or mature into new muscle fibres, but in diseases like Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, stem cells become stuck and muscles deteriorate.
Now, new research from Dr.
Lynn Megeney
and colleagues unravels for the first time how a protein called Caspase 3, infamous for orchestrating cell death, actually plays a key role in muscle regeneration. Much like a Pac-Man, it turns out that caspase 3 can chop through Pax7, the protein which tells stem cells to multiply rather than mature. In so doing, caspase 3 determines when muscle stem cells will mature into muscle fibre and tissue. This research could lead to new approaches to treat muscular dystrophy and other muscle diseases. See
PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)
for details.
Co-authors:
Sarah A. Dick, Natasha C. Chang, Nicolas A. Dumont, Ryan A. V. Bell, Charis Putinski,Yoichi Kawabe, David W. Litchfield, Michael A. Rudnicki
Funders:
Muscular Dystrophy Association USA, Canadian Institute of Health Research
About The Ottawa Hospital
The Ottawa Hospital is one of Canada’s largest learning and research hospitals with over 1,100 beds, approximately 12,000 staff and an annual budget of over $1.2 billion. Our focus on research and learning helps us develop new and innovative ways to treat patients and improve care. As a multi-campus hospital, affiliated with the University of Ottawa, we deliver specialized care to the Eastern Ontario region, but our techniques and research discoveries are adopted around the world. We engage the community at all levels to support our vision for better patient care.
For further information, please contact
Jennifer Ganton
Director, Communications and Public Relations,
Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
Office: 613-798-5555 x 73325
Cell:613-614-5253
jganton@ohri.ca