Repulsive guidance molecules a, b and c are skeletal muscle proteins, and repulsive guidance molecule a promotes cellular hypertrophy and is necessary for myotube fusion

Aline Fagundes Martins, José Xavier Neto, Ana Azambuja, Maria Lorena Sereno, Antonio Figueira, Paulo Henrique Campos-Junior, Millor Fernandes Rosário, Cristiane Bittencourt Barroso Toledo, Gerluza Aparecida Borges Silva, Gregory Thomas Kitten, Luiz Lehmann Coutinho, Susanne Dietrich, Erika Cristina Jorge

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Abstract

Repulsive guidance molecules (RGMs) compose a family of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored axon guidance molecules and perform several functions during neural development. New evidence has suggested possible new roles for these axon guidance molecules during skeletal muscle development, which has not been investigated thus far. In the present study, we show that RGMa, RGMb and RGMc are all induced during skeletal muscle differentiation in vitro. Immunolocalization performed on adult skeletal muscle cells revealed that RGMa, RGMb and RGMc are sarcolemmal proteins. Additionally, RGMa was found to be a sarcoplasmic protein with a surprisingly striated pattern. RGMa colocalization with known sarcoplasmic proteins suggested that this axon guidance molecule is a skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic protein. Western blot analysis revealed two RGMa fragments of 60 and 33 kDa, respectively, in adult skeletal muscle samples. RGMa phenotypes in skeletal muscle cells (C2C12 and primary myoblasts) were also investigated. RGMa overexpression produced hypertrophic cells, whereas RGMa knockdown resulted in the opposite phenotype. RGMa knockdown also blocked myotube formation in both skeletal muscle cell types. Our results are the first to show an axon guidance molecule as a skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic protein and to include RGMa in a system that regulates skeletal muscle cell size and differentiation.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)326-338
Number of pages13
JournalCells, tissues, organs
Volume200
Issue number5
Early online date24 Sept 2015
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2015

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