Muscle hypertrophy experimentally induced by administration of denervated muscle extract

The effects of systemic administration of muscle extract on normal muscle were studied. Male Wistar rats received intraperitoneal injections of normal and denervated muscle extract over 5 consecutive days. Soleus muscles were then submitted to histological, histochemical and quantitative-morphometric analysis. The group receiving denervated muscle extract showed considerable muscle fiber hypertrophy, together with the formation of new fibers suggestive of hyperplasia. The systemic administration of denervated muscle extract was shown to have a considerable myotrophic effect on normal muscle, evident in the hypertrophy and hyperplasia of muscle fibers.