Histochemical and enzymatic characteristics of skeletal muscle in master athletes

1990 ◽  
Vol 68 (5) ◽  
pp. 1896-1901 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. R. Coggan ◽  
R. J. Spina ◽  
M. A. Rogers ◽  
D. S. King ◽  
M. Brown ◽  
...  

Many older athletes are capable of endurance performances equal to those of young runners who have higher maximal O2 uptakes (VO2max). To determine whether this is a result of differences in skeletal muscle characteristics, gastrocnemius muscle biopsy samples were obtained from eight master athletes [aged 63 +/- 6 (SD) yr] and eight young (aged 26 +/- 3 yr) runners. The young runners were matched with the master athletes for 10-km running performance and for their volume, pace, and type of training. Despite similar 10-km run times, VO2max was 11% lower (P less than 0.05) in the master athletes. Fiber type distribution did not differ between groups, with both groups having 60% type I and very few type IIb fibers. Succinate dehydrogenase and beta-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase activities, however, were 31 and 24% higher in the master athletes compared with the matched young runners, whereas lactate dehydrogenase activity was 46% lower (all P less than 0.05). The capillary-to-fiber ratio was also greater in the master athletes; however, capillary density was similar in the two groups, because of the master athletes' 34% larger (P less than 0.05) type I fibers. These differences in skeletal muscle characteristics may explain the master athletes' ability to perform as well as some young runners despite having a lower VO2max.

2014 ◽  
Vol 306 (9) ◽  
pp. H1364-H1370 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dalane W. Kitzman ◽  
Barbara Nicklas ◽  
William E. Kraus ◽  
Mary F. Lyles ◽  
Joel Eggebeen ◽  
...  

Heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFPEF) is the most common form of HF in older persons. The primary chronic symptom in HFPEF is severe exercise intolerance, and its pathophysiology is poorly understood. To determine whether skeletal muscle abnormalities contribute to their severely reduced peak exercise O2 consumption (V̇o2), we examined 22 older HFPEF patients (70 ± 7 yr) compared with 43 age-matched healthy control (HC) subjects using needle biopsy of the vastus lateralis muscle and cardiopulmonary exercise testing to assess muscle fiber type distribution and capillarity and peak V̇o2. In HFPEF versus HC patients, peak V̇o2 (14.7 ± 2.1 vs. 22.9 ± 6.6 ml·kg−1·min−1, P < 0.001) and 6-min walk distance (454 ± 72 vs. 573 ± 71 m, P < 0.001) were reduced. In HFPEF versus HC patients, the percentage of type I fibers (39.0 ± 11.4% vs. 53.7 ± 12.4%, P < 0.001), type I-to-type II fiber ratio (0.72 ± 0.39 vs. 1.36 ± 0.85, P = 0.001), and capillary-to-fiber ratio (1.35 ± 0.32 vs. 2.53 ± 1.37, P = 0.006) were reduced, whereas the percentage of type II fibers was greater (61 ± 11.4% vs. 46.3 ± 12.4%, P < 0.001). In univariate analyses, the percentage of type I fibers ( r = 0.39, P = 0.003), type I-to-type II fiber ratio ( r = 0.33, P = 0.02), and capillary-to-fiber ratio ( r = 0.59, P < 0.0001) were positively related to peak V̇o2. In multivariate analyses, type I fibers and the capillary-to-fiber ratio remained significantly related to peak V̇o2. We conclude that older HFPEF patients have significant abnormalities in skeletal muscle, characterized by a shift in muscle fiber type distribution with reduced type I oxidative muscle fibers and a reduced capillary-to-fiber ratio, and these may contribute to their severe exercise intolerance. This suggests potential new therapeutic targets in this difficult to treat disorder.


1998 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 1273-1278 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Norman ◽  
Donna K. Mahnke-Zizelman ◽  
Amy Vallis ◽  
Richard L. Sabina

AMPD1 genotype, relative fiber type composition, training status, and gender were evaluated as contributing factors to the reported variation in AMP deaminase enzyme activity in healthy skeletal muscle. Multifactorial correlative analyses demonstrate that AMPD1 genotype has the greatest effect on enzyme activity. An AMPD1 mutant allele frequency of 13.7 and a 1.7% incidence of enzyme deficiency was found across 175 healthy subjects. Homozygotes for the AMPD1 normal allele have high enzyme activities, and heterozygotes display intermediate activities. When examined according to genotype, other factors were found to affect variability as follows: AMP deaminase activity in homozygotes for the normal allele exhibits a negative correlation with the relative percentage of type I fibers and training status. Conversely, residual AMP deaminase activity in homozygotes for the mutant allele displays a positive correlation with the relative percentage of type I fibers. Opposing correlations in different homozygous AMPD1 genotypes are likely due to relative fiber-type differences in the expression of AMPD1 and AMPD3 isoforms. Gender also contributes to variation in total skeletal muscle AMP deaminase activity, with normal homozygous and heterozygous women showing only 85–88% of the levels observed in genotype-matched men.


1997 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. 1291-1299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Delp ◽  
Changping Duan ◽  
John P. Mattson ◽  
Timothy I. Musch

Delp, Michael D., Changping Duan, John P. Mattson, and Timothy I. Musch. Changes in skeletal muscle biochemistry and histology relative to fiber type in rats with heart failure. J. Appl. Physiol. 83(4): 1291–1299, 1997.—One of the primary consequences of left ventricular dysfunction (LVD) after myocardial infarction is a decrement in exercise capacity. Several factors have been hypothesized to account for this decrement, including alterations in skeletal muscle metabolism and aerobic capacity. The purpose of this study was to determine whether LVD-induced alterations in skeletal muscle enzyme activities, fiber composition, and fiber size are 1) generalized in muscles or specific to muscles composed primarily of a given fiber type and 2) related to the severity of the LVD. Female Wistar rats were divided into three groups: sham-operated controls ( n = 13) and rats with moderate ( n = 10) and severe ( n = 7) LVD. LVD was surgically induced by ligating the left main coronary artery and resulted in elevations ( P < 0.05) in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (sham, 5 ± 1 mmHg; moderate LVD, 11 ± 1 mmHg; severe LVD, 25 ± 1 mmHg). Moderate LVD decreased the activities of phosphofructokinase (PFK) and citrate synthase in one muscle composed of type IIB fibers but did not modify fiber composition or size of any muscle studied. However, severe LVD diminished the activity of enzymes involved in terminal and β-oxidation in muscles composed primarily of type I fibers, type IIA fibers, and type IIB fibers. In addition, severe LVD induced a reduction in the activity of PFK in type IIB muscle, a 10% reduction in the percentage of type IID/X fibers, and a corresponding increase in the portion of type IIB fibers. Atrophy of type I fibers, type IIA fibers, and/or type IIB fibers occurred in soleus and plantaris muscles of rats with severe LVD. These data indicate that rats with severe LVD after myocardial infarction exhibit 1) decrements in mitochondrial enzyme activities independent of muscle fiber composition, 2) a reduction in PFK activity in type IIB muscle, 3) transformation of type IID/X to type IIB fibers, and 4) atrophy of type I, IIA, and IIB fibers.


2012 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 292-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ildus I. Ahmetov ◽  
Olga L. Vinogradova ◽  
Alun G. Williams

The ability to perform aerobic or anaerobic exercise varies widely among individuals, partially depending on their muscle-fiber composition. Variability in the proportion of skeletal-muscle fiber types may also explain marked differences in aspects of certain chronic disease states including obesity, insulin resistance, and hypertension. In untrained individuals, the proportion of slow-twitch (Type I) fibers in the vastus lateralis muscle is typically around 50% (range 5–90%), and it is unusual for them to undergo conversion to fast-twitch fibers. It has been suggested that the genetic component for the observed variability in the proportion of Type I fibers in human muscles is on the order of 40–50%, indicating that muscle fiber-type composition is determined by both genotype and environment. This article briefly reviews current progress in the understanding of genetic determinism of fiber-type proportion in human skeletal muscle. Several polymorphisms of genes involved in the calcineurin–NFAT pathway, mitochondrial biogenesis, glucose and lipid metabolism, cytoskeletal function, hypoxia and angiogenesis, and circulatory homeostasis have been associated with fiber-type composition. As muscle is a major contributor to metabolism and physical strength and can readily adapt, it is not surprising that many of these gene variants have been associated with physical performance and athlete status, as well as metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. Genetic variants associated with fiber-type proportions have important implications for our understanding of muscle function in both health and disease.


2007 ◽  
Vol 92 (4) ◽  
pp. 1530-1534 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine B. Jensen ◽  
Heidi Storgaard ◽  
Sten Madsbad ◽  
Erik A. Richter ◽  
Allan A. Vaag

Abstract Context: Low birth weight (LBW), a surrogate marker of an adverse fetal milieu, is linked to muscle insulin resistance, impaired insulin-stimulated glycolysis, and future risk of type 2 diabetes. Skeletal muscle mass, fiber composition, and capillary density are important determinants of muscle function and metabolism, and alterations have been implicated in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate whether an adverse fetal environment (LBW) induces permanent changes in skeletal muscle morphology, which may contribute to the dysmetabolic phenotype associated with LBW. Design and Subjects: Vastus lateralis muscle was obtained by percutaneous biopsy from 20 healthy 19-yr-old men with birth weights at 10th percentile or lower for gestational age (LBW) and 20 normal birth weight controls, matched for body fat, physical fitness, and whole-body glucose disposal. Myofibrillar ATPase staining was used to classify muscle fibers as type I, IIa, and IIx (formerly type IIb), and double immunostaining was performed to stain capillaries (LBW, n = 8; normal birth weight, n = 12). Results: LBW was associated with increased proportion of type IIx fibers (+66%; P = 0.03), at the expense of decreased type IIa fibers (−22%; P = 0.003). No significant change was observed in proportion of type I fibers (+16%; P = 0.11). In addition, mean area of type IIa fibers was increased (+29%; P = 0.01) and tended to be increased for type I fibers as well (+17%; P = 0.08). Capillary density was not significantly different between groups. Conclusion: Alterations in fiber composition and size may contribute to development of type 2 diabetes in individuals with LBW.


1986 ◽  
Vol 64 (9) ◽  
pp. 1245-1251 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Bouchard ◽  
J. A. Simoneau ◽  
G. Lortie ◽  
M. R. Boulay ◽  
M. Marcotte ◽  
...  

The purpose of the study was to estimate the genetic effect for skeletal muscle characteristics using pairs of nontwin brothers (n = 32), dizygotic (DZ) twins (n = 26), and monozygotic (MZ) twins (n = 35). They were submitted to a needle biopsy of the vastus lateralis for the determination of fiber type distribution (I, IIa, IIb) and the following enzymes were assayed for maximal activity: creatine kinase, hexokinase, phosphofructokinase (PFK), lactate dehydrogenase, malate dehydrogenase, 3-hydroxyacyl CoA dehydrogenase, and oxoglutarate dehydrogenase (OGDH). For the percentage of type I fibers, intraclass correlations were 0.33 (p < 0.05), 0.52 (p < 0.01), and 0.55 (p < 0.01) in brothers and DZ and MZ twins, respectively. MZ twins exhibited significant within-pair resemblance for all enzyme activities (0.30 ≤ r ≤ 0.68). In spite of these correlations, genetic analyses performed with the twin data alone indicated that there was no significant genetic effect for muscle fiber type I, IIa, and IIb distribution and fiber areas. Although there were significant correlations in MZ twins for all muscle enzyme activities, the often nonsignificant intraclass coefficients found in brothers and DZ twins suggest that variations in enzyme activities are highly related to common environmental conditions and nongenetic factors. However, genetic factors appear to be involved in the variation of regulatory enzymes of the glycolytic (PFK) and citric acid cycle (OGDH) pathways and in the variation of the oxidative to glycolytic activity ratio (PFK/OGDH ratio). Data show that these genetic effects reach only about 25–50% of the total phenotypic variation when data are adjusted for age and sex differences.


1998 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 419-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerald B. Moon ◽  
Sue Ann Thompson ◽  
Elise Jaeckel ◽  
John W. Canady

Objective This study examined the muscle fiber type distribution within the normal adult levator veli palatini muscle. Methods Levator veli palatini muscle tissue was harvested from the palates of 12 (seven female, five male) adult noncleft cadavers. Adjacent sections were stained for adenosine triphosphatase at pH 10.4 or 4.2. After mounting, magnifying, and photographing, Type I versus Type II fiber types were differentiated by the intensity of, or by the inhibition of, staining of matched fibers at each pH level. Type I fibers stained light at pH 10.4 and dark at pH 4.2, while Type II fibers stained light at pH 4.2 and dark at pH 10.4. Main outcome Measures The number of fibers counted for each specimen ranged from 60 to 616. The numbers of Type I and Type II stained fibers appearing in each muscle tissue sample were determined and expressed as a percentage of the total number of fibers identified. A few identified fibers could not be labelled as either Type I or Type II. Results The overall proportion of Type I fibers, averaged across all specimens, was 59.8%. Male specimens had 67.4% Type I fibers and 31.8% Type II fibers, while female specimens had 54.4% Type I fibers and 44.4% Type II fibers. Conclusions Observed fiber type distributions were similar to those reported for other articulatory muscles, but differed slightly from previously reported distributions for normal levator veli palatini. The distributions observed in this study provide a baseline against which to relate fiber type data from the levator veli palatini of cleft palates to the functional status of the velopharyngeal mechanism.


2007 ◽  
Vol 103 (6) ◽  
pp. 2105-2111 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. R. Tupling ◽  
E. Bombardier ◽  
R. D. Stewart ◽  
C. Vigna ◽  
A. E. Aqui

To investigate the time course of fiber type-specific heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) expression in human skeletal muscle after acute exercise, 10 untrained male volunteers performed single-legged isometric knee extensor exercise at 60% of their maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) with a 50% duty cycle (5-s contraction and 5-s relaxation) for 30 min. Muscle biopsies were collected from the vastus lateralis before (Pre) exercise in the rested control leg (C) and immediately after exercise (Post) in the exercised leg (E) only and on recovery days 1 (R1), 2 (R2), 3 (R3), and 6 (R6) from both legs. As demonstrated by Western blot analysis, whole muscle Hsp70 content was unchanged ( P > 0.05) immediately after exercise (Pre vs. Post), was increased ( P < 0.05) by ∼43% at R1, and remained elevated throughout the entire recovery period in E only. Hsp70 expression was also assessed in individual muscle fiber types I, IIA, and IIAX/IIX by immunohistochemistry. There were no fiber type differences ( P > 0.05) in basal Hsp70 expression. Immediately after exercise, Hsp70 expression was increased ( P < 0.05) in type I fibers by ∼87% but was unchanged ( P > 0.05) in type II fibers (Pre vs. Post). At R1 and throughout recovery, Hsp70 content in E was increased above basal levels ( P < 0.05) in all fiber types, but Hsp70 expression was always highest ( P < 0.05) in type I fibers. Hsp70 content in C was not different from Pre at any time throughout recovery. Glycogen depletion was observed at Post in all type II, but not type I, fibers, suggesting that the fiber type differences in exercise-induced Hsp70 expression were not related to glycogen availability. These results demonstrate that the time course of exercise-induced Hsp70 expression in human skeletal muscle is fiber type specific.


2002 ◽  
Vol 50 (12) ◽  
pp. 1685-1692 ◽  
Author(s):  
John P. Mattson ◽  
Todd A. Miller ◽  
David C. Poole ◽  
Michael D. Delp

The hamster is a valuable biological model for physiological investigation. Despite the obvious importance of the integration of cardiorespiratory and muscular system function, little information is available regarding hamster muscle fiber type and oxidative capacity, both of which are key determinants of muscle function. The purpose of this investigation was to measure immunohistochemically the relative composition and size of muscle fibers composed of types I, IIA, IIX, and IIB fibers in hamster skeletal muscle. The oxidative capacity of each muscle was also assessed by measuring citrate synthase activity. Twenty-eight hindlimb, respiratory, and facial muscles or muscle parts from adult (144–147 g bw) male Syrian golden hamsters ( n=3) were dissected bilaterally, weighed, and frozen for immunohistochemical and biochemical analysis. Combining data from all 28 muscles analyzed, type I fibers made up 5% of the muscle mass, type IIA fibers 16%, type IIX fibers 39%, and type IIB fibers 40%. Mean fiber cross-sectional area across muscles was 1665 ± 328 μm2 for type I fibers, 1900 ± 417 μm2 for type IIA fibers, 3230 ± 784 μm2 for type IIX fibers, and 4171 ± 864 μm2 for type IIB fibers. Citrate synthase activity was most closely related to the population of type IIA fibers ( r=0.68, p<0.0001) and was in the rank order of type IIA > I > IIX > IIB. These data demonstrate that hamster skeletal muscle is predominantly composed of type IIB and IIX fibers.


Author(s):  
Fakhreddin Yaghoob Nezhad ◽  
Annett Riermeier ◽  
Martin Schönfelder ◽  
Lore Becker ◽  
Martin Hrabĕ de Angelis ◽  
...  

AbstractThe Hippo signal transduction network regulates transcription through Yap/Taz-Tead1-4 in many tissues including skeletal muscle. Whilst transgenic mice have been generated for many Hippo genes, the resultant skeletal muscle phenotypes were not always characterized. Here, we aimed to phenotype the hindlimb muscles of Hippo gene-mutated Lats1−/−, Mst2−/−, Vgll3−/−, and Vgll4+/− mice. This analysis revealed that Lats1−/− mice have 11% more slow type I fibers than age and sex-matched wild-type controls. Moreover, the mRNA expression of slow Myh7 increased by 50%, and the concentration of type I myosin heavy chain is 80% higher in Lats1−/− mice than in age and sex-matched wild-type controls. Second, to find out whether exercise-related stimuli affect Lats1, we stimulated C2C12 myotubes with the hypertrophy agent clenbuterol or the energy stress agent AICAR. We found that both stimulated Lats1 expression by 1.2 and 1.3 fold respectively. Third, we re-analyzed published datasets and found that Lats1 mRNA in muscle is 63% higher in muscular dystrophy, increases by 17–77% after cardiotoxin-induced muscle injury, by 41–71% in muscles during overload-induced hypertrophy, and by 19–21% after endurance exercise when compared to respective controls. To conclude, Lats1 contributes to the regulation of muscle fiber type proportions, and its expression is regulated by physiological and pathological situations in skeletal muscle.


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