Immobility reduces muscle fiber necrosis in dystrophin deficient muscular dystrophy

Physiotherapeutic Protocol and ZnO Nanoparticles: A Combined Novel Treatment Program against Bacterial Pyomyositis

Myositis tropicans or pyomyositis is a muscle inflammation resulting from a bacterial infection of skeletal muscle (commonly caused by Staphylococcus aureus) that usually leads to hematogenous muscle seeding. The present study was designed to estimate the role of ZnO-NPs and a physiotherapeutic program in the management of induced biceps femoris atrophy in rats through histological, biochemical, and radiological examinations at different time intervals. At the beginning, several bacterial strains were evaluated through a proteolytic enzyme activity assay and the highest activity was recorded with the Staphylococcus aureus strain. ZnO-NPs were synthesized with the arc discharge method with an average size of 19.4 nm. The antibacterial activity of ZnO-NPs was investigated and it was revealed that the prepared ZnO-NPs showed a minimum inhibitory concentration of 8 µg/mL against the tested bacterium. The cytotoxicity of the prepared ZnO-NPs was tested in C2C12 myoblast cells, and it was elaborated that CC50 was 344.16 µg/mL. Biceps femoris pyomyositis was induced with a potent strain (Staphylococcus aureus); then, a physiotherapeutic program combined with the prepared ZnO-NPs treatment protocol was applied and evaluated. The combined program claimed antibacterial properties, preventing muscle atrophy, and resulted in the most comparable value of muscle mass.

Exercise in neuromuscular diseases

This article reviews the current knowledge regarding the benefits and contraindications of exercise on individuals with neuromuscular diseases (NMDs). Specific exercise prescriptions for individuals with NMDs do not exist because the evidence base is limited. Understanding the effect of exercise on individuals with NMDs requires the implementation of a series of multicenter, randomized controlled trials that are sufficiently powered and use reliable and valid outcome measures to assess the effect of exercise interventions-a major effort for each NMD. In addition to traditional measures of exercise efficacy, outcome variables should include measures of functional status and health-related quality of life.

Rehabilitation management of neuromuscular disease: the role of exercise training

This paper summarizes the current state of knowledge regarding exercise and neuromuscular diseases/disorders (NMDs) and reviews salient studies in the literature. Unfortunately, there is inadequate evidence in much of the NMDs to make specific recommendations regarding exercise prescriptions. This review focuses on the role of exercise in a few of the specific NMDs where most research has taken place and recommends future research directions.

Duchenne muscle activity evaluation and muscle function preservation: is it possible a prophylactic strategy?

Duchenne muscular dystrophy yields pervasive and progressive muscle mass loss. In the current measures relating to the monitoring of disease progression the following are relevant (i): the type of scale used, (ii) the clinical significance of the attribute being measured and (iii) the mathematical properties of the data provided. The high prevalence of obesity at an early stage of this pathology could result not only from reduced physical activity, but also from low resting energy expenditure, abnormal nutrient utilization or overfeeding. This muscle weakness may be attenuated by regular low-intensity exercise. However, there is a critical lack of data to support appropriate exercise prescription. Because inappropriate activity may exacerbate the dystrophic process, a systematic analysis of muscle function to determine potential exercise load thresholds to avoid injury in dystrophic mice and dogs, and then in humans is recommended.

Drosophila Dystrophin is required for integrity of the musculature

Duchenne muscular dystrophy is caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene and is characterized by progressive muscle wasting. The highly conserved dystrophin gene encodes a number of protein isoforms. The Dystrophin protein is part of a large protein assembly, the Dystrophin glycoprotein complex, which stabilizes the muscle membrane during contraction and acts as a scaffold for signaling molecules. How the absence of Dystrophin results in the onset of muscular dystrophy remains unclear. Here, we have used transgenic RNA interference to examine the roles of the Drosophila Dystrophin isoforms in muscle. We previously reported that one of the Drosophila Dystrophin orthologs, the DLP2 isoform, is not required to maintain muscle integrity, but plays a role in neuromuscular homeostasis by regulating neurotransmitter release. In this report, we show that reduction of all Dystrophin isoform expression levels in the musculature does not apparently affect myogenesis or muscle attachment, but results in progressive muscle degeneration in larvae and adult flies. We find that a recently identified Dystrophin isoform, Dp117, is expressed in the musculature and is required for muscle integrity. Muscle fibers with reduced levels of Dp117 display disorganized actin-myosin filaments and the cellular hallmarks of necrosis. Our results indicate the existence of at least two possibly separate roles of dystrophin in muscle, maintaining synaptic homeostasis and preserving the structural stability of the muscle.