Cell death dis: scientists found new genes regulating muscle cells

May 29, 2019 / Biovalley / scientists at York University in Canada have found a unique set of genes that play an important role in gene expression and differentiation of muscle cells, which may lead to new therapeutic targets to prevent the spread of muscle cancer The researchers analyzed gene networks in muscle cells and found that the proteins Smad7 and β - Catenin work together in vivo to regulate muscle cell differentiation, growth and repair When these regulatory proteins work together, they control the normal gene expression pathway, thus producing normal skeletal muscle cells Photo source: cell death & disease the study, published in cell death & disease, shows that dysfunction of a Smad7 and β - catenin complex can lead to impaired myocyte differentiation, which is a sign of some soft tissue tumors, such as rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) This rare cancer, which usually affects children, forms in soft tissue, mainly skeletal muscle tissue, and sometimes in hollow organs, such as the bladder or uterus "What happens in those rhabdomyosarcoma cells is that they have muscle cell like characteristics, but the difference is that normal muscle cells stop dividing "Said John McDermott McDermott says these cells look like muscle cells in terms of function and phenotype, but they don't stop dividing, which is why they can form tumors in different parts of the body "Our idea is that part of the defect in the differentiation process of these cells is that the β - catenin complex in these cells is degraded due to the abnormal signal pathway controlling it "Said McDermott "If we can stabilize the β - Catenin and Smad7 complexes of these cells, we may cause them to differentiate and stop proliferation, which means that we can prevent these cells from forming tumors "This study was conducted at the muscle health research center in York City, the first of its kind in Canada The center is concerned about the importance of skeletal muscle for the overall health and well-being of Canadians This new molecular genetic discovery may lead to cancer treatment strategies targeting these specific molecules The study also identified new molecular targets for therapeutic interventions in muscle atrophy and cancer "Unless you know how things work, it's hard to find any particular goal," McDermott said Therefore, it is very important to determine the normal function of molecules before evaluating the abnormal function of cancer cells In this way, specific molecules can be targeted for treatment, so as to develop new drugs to treat the disease, or in some cases, existing drugs can be used "The research team is led by soma Tripathi, Ph.D., and includes research assistant and Dr tetsuki Miyake Their research focus is to understand the role of transcription factors in tissue-specific gene expression and differentiation They do this by identifying DNA binding proteins involved in transcription regulation during muscle development The study also found new regulatory factors for muscle regeneration, which also opened the door for the pharmaceutical industry to develop new treatment methods to solve the problem of muscle loss in the normal but weak elderly population "Muscle regeneration is a highly complex process, regulated by a variety of transcription factors," Tripathi said Transcription factors are essentially proteins that help turn genes on or off by binding to specific genes in the genome We believe that two such transcription factors, Smad7 and β - Catenin, play a key role in the gene expression patterns required for specific muscle development and maintenance "Reference: soma Tripathi et al, Smad7: β - catenin complex regulations myogenic gene transcription, cell death & disease (2019) Doi: 10.1038/s41419-019-1615-0