RNAi-based motility screen of predicted sarcopenia-associated genes during aging in C. elegans.

Sarcopenia, the age-related decline in skeletal muscle mass, function, and strength, is driven by mechanisms that are incompletely understood. We analyzed a large meta-analysis of human skeletal muscle transcriptomic datasets to identify candidate regulators of sarcopenia. Orthologs of these candidate genes in Caenorhabditis elegans were targeted by RNA interference, and age-dependent motility was assessed by thrashing assay on days 1, 4, 7, and 11 of adulthood. Of 243 genes tested, silencing of 143 did not significantly alter motility at any time point. These results provide a reference dataset for future studies of muscle aging and sarcopenia.