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Functional recovery from eccentric injury is maintained in sarcopenic mouse muscle
Ana P Valencia1, Ashton T Samuelson1, Rudolph Stuppard1
1Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Brotman 140, 850 Republican St., Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
JCSM Rapid Communications
|July 22, 2024
Summary
Older mice with sarcopenia showed greater initial muscle damage from eccentric contractions but recovered contractile function similarly to younger mice. Muscle function in aged mice is not more susceptible to long-term impairment after injury.
Area of Science:
- Muscle physiology
- Aging research
- Sarcopenia
Background:
- Eccentric contractions induce muscle damage (EIMD), impairing muscle function.
- Poor EIMD recovery is linked to sarcopenia, but age-related differences in muscle function susceptibility are unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- Compare EIMD-induced contractile function recovery between very old (VO) and young adult (YA) mice.
- Investigate age-related differences in force, fatigue, tetanus, and twitch kinetics post-EIMD.
Main Methods:
- Induced EIMD in plantarflexor muscles of VO and YA mice via eccentric contractions.
- Assessed tetanic force, kinetics, force-frequency, and fatigue rates pre-EIMD and at 3 days post-EIMD (3dEIMD).
- Conducted histological analysis of gastrocnemius muscles.
Main Results:
- VO mice experienced greater immediate loss of isometric tetanic force post-EIMD than YA mice.
- Tetanic contraction rate and force recovery at 3dEIMD were comparable between VO and YA mice.
- Twitch relaxation kinetics recovered faster in VO mice, and both groups showed similar fatigue rates, with VO remaining more fatigue-resistant.
Conclusions:
- Aged, sarcopenic muscle recovers contractile function similarly to younger muscle post-EIMD, despite greater initial injury susceptibility.
- Neither age group exhibited accelerated muscle fatigue during recovery, suggesting aged muscles are not more prone to long-term functional deficits after EIMD.
