Stem Cells may be Solution to Muscular Dystrophy

New Canadian Research Identifies Protein for Muscle Growth & Repair

Jun 8, 2009

Researchers have discovered that the protein Wnt7a improves stem cell growth in skeletal muscle - a discovery that may help people with degenerative muscle conditions.

New stem cell research has identified a protein that speeds the growth and repair of skeletal muscle – a discovery that may be a solution for people with muscular dystrophy and other muscle-wasting conditions.

This research, published in the June 5, 2009 edition of the journal Cell Stem Cell, is being hailed as "a seminal discovery" by Dr. Michael Rudnicki, scientific director of Canada's Stem Cell Network and one of the lead researchers on the project.

Stem Cell Protein Produces Bigger Muscles

The study's findings center on a protein known as "Wnt7a" and the pathway through which it increases the number of stem cells in a muscle. This protein speeds the growth and repair of adult muscle cells, making muscles bigger.

The pathway using Wnt7a not only controls the number of stem cells in skeletal muscle, affecting the muscle's size – it may also be a "universal mechanism," according to Rudnicki, which can be applied to other organs and tissues.

The study, conducted using field mice that were genetically altered to overproduce the Wnt7a protein, had some interesting findings. Unmodified mice without the Wnt7a protein lacked the stem cells to repair damaged muscles. Modified mice with the protein displayed an 18% increase in muscle mass, more stem cells, and much higher regenerative abilities in those muscles.

How Can Wnt7a Help with Muscular Dystrophy?

It is hoped that these findings will be useful in the development of new treatments for muscle wasting diseases such as muscular dystrophy.

Muscular dystrophy is a genetic disease in which the muscles of the body are weakened over time. It can progress slowly or quickly, but eventually leads to death – and, at present, there is no known cure for the many types of muscular dystrophy or the hundreds of related diseases and conditions. The new stem cell research on the Wnt7a protein is a promising start to what may be a solution for muscular dystrophy patients.

"It provides tremendous into the mechanisms that lead to the generation of muscle stem cells," said the Canadian Institute of Genetics' scientific director, Rod McInnes. "It's important because it brings us a step closer, in the long run, to using muscle stem cells in cell replacement therapy for muscular diseases such as muscular dystrophy."

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The copyright of the article Stem Cells may be Solution to Muscular Dystrophy in Healthcare Research is owned by Victoria Anisman-Reiner. Permission to republish Stem Cells may be Solution to Muscular Dystrophy in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.