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Updated: Mar 23, 2026

Identification of Skeletal Muscle Satellite Cells by Immunofluorescence with Pax7 and Laminin Antibodies
Published on: April 19, 2018
PAX3+ skeletal muscle satellite cells retain long-term self-renewal and proliferation
Qiumei Yang1, Jie Yu1, Bing Yu1
1Animal Nutrition Institute, Sichuan Agricultural University, No. 46, Xinkang Road, Yaan, Sichuan, 625014, People's Republic of China.
Introduction:
Different populations of satellite cells (SCs) have been identified, but their functional difference remains unclear.
Methods:
We used cell-surface markers and paired box transcription factor 3 (Pax3)/paired box transcription factor 7 (Pax7) expression to separate SC populations. In addition, self-renewal, proliferation, and differentiation abilities of each population were analyzed.
Results:
Pax3+ /Pax7- SCs exhibited higher proliferation ability characterized by forming clusters of myogenic colonies with more self-renewing cells after several passages, while Pax3- /Pax7+ SCs had faster differentiation. The myotubes derived from Pax3+ /Pax7- SCs tended to express slow-myosin heavy chain and exhibited rhythmic contraction, while myotubes originating from Pax3- /Pax7+ SCs primarily formed fast-myosin heavy chains characterized by transitory contraction.
Conclusions:
Pax3+ /Pax7- SCs exhibited the ability of long-term self-renewal and proliferation, whereas Pax3- /Pax7+ SCs demonstrated faster differentiation. Muscle Nerve 54: 943-951, 2016.
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