Accelerating muscle cells generation from stem cells possible

In a path-breaking discovery, researchers at University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered a novel way to make large concentrations of skeletal muscle cells from human stem cells.

The new method could be used to generate large numbers of muscle cells and muscle progenitors directly from human pluripotent stem cells.

These stem cells, such as embryonic (ES) or induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, can be made into virtually any adult cell in the body.

"The novelty of this technique is that it generates a larger number of muscle stem cells without using genetic modification which is required by existing methods for making muscle cells," explained Masatoshi Suzuki, an assistant professor of comparative biosciences in school of veterinary medicine at University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Adapting a method previously used to make brain cells, Suzuki directed universal stem cells to become both adult muscle cells and muscle progenitors.

Importantly, the new technique grows the pluripotent stem cells as floating spheres in high concentrations of two growth factors - fibroblast growth factor-2 and epidermal growth factor.

These growth factors 'urge' the stem cells to become muscle cells.

"The new protocol avoids some techniques that would prohibit clinical applications. We think this new method has great promise for alleviating human suffering," added co-author Jonathan Van Dyke, a post-doctoral fellow in Suzuki's laboratory.

The new technique can also be used to grow muscle cells from iPS cells from patients with neuromuscular diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinal muscular atrophy and muscular dystrophy.

Thus, the technique could produce adult muscle cells in a dish that carry genetic diseases.

The new protocol incorporates a number of advantages.

First, the cells are grown in defined supplements without animal products such as bovine serum, enhancing the clinical safety for the muscle stem cells.

Second, when grown as spheres, the cells grow faster than with previous techniques.

Third, 40 to 60 percent of the cells grown using the process are either muscle cells or muscle progenitors, a high proportion compared to traditional non-genetic techniques of generating muscle cells.

"These cells could then be used as a tool for studying these diseases and screening potential drug compounds," Suzuki noted in a paper published in the journal Stem Cells Translational Medicine.

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An apple peel a day keeps fat away

Ursolic acid - a waxy substance found in apple peel - increases muscle and brown fat in mice that are on a high-fat diet.

These mice burn more calories and have reduced obesity levels, pre-diabetes and fatty liver disease than the mice that do not receive the supplement. Researchers believe that this might be helpful in reducing obesity.

Until quite recently, researchers believed that only infants had brown fat, which then disappeared during childhood. However, improved imaging techniques have shown that adults do retain a very small amount of the substance mostly in the neck and between the shoulder blades. Some studies have linked increased levels of brown fat with lower levels of obesity and healthier levels of blood sugar and blood lipid, leading to the suggestion that brown fat may be helpful in preventing obesity and diabetes.

Obesity and its associated problems such as diabetes and fatty liver disease are increasingly common global health concerns. A new study by  researchers shows that a natural substance found in apple peel can partially protect mice from obesity and some of its harmful effects.

The findings suggest that the substance known as ursolic acid reduces obesity and its associated health problems by increasing the amount of muscle and brown fat, two tissues recognised for their calorie-burning properties.

"From previous work, we knew that ursolic acid increases muscle mass and strength in healthy mice, which is important because it might suggest a potential therapy for muscle wasting,"he says. "In this study, we tested ursolic acid in mice on a high-fat diet - a mouse model of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Once again, ursolic acid increased skeletal muscle. Interestingly, it also reduced obesity, pre-diabetes and fatty liver disease.

"Since muscle is very good at burning calories, the increased muscle in ursolic acid-treated mice may be sufficient to explain how ursolic acid reduces obesity. However, we were surprised to find that ursolic acid also increased brown fat, a fantastic calorie burner. This increase in brown fat may also help protect against obesity."

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