proteins as drug targets for muscle atrophy

[Guest guest]

(This is another news item I found at Regeneron's site - hopeful news ~

G)

1: Science 2001 Nov 23;294(5547):1704-8

Identification of ubiquitin ligases required for skeletal muscle

atrophy.

Bodine SC, Latres E, Baumhueter S, Lai VK, Nunez L, e BA,

Poueymirou WT, Panaro FJ, Na E, Dharmarajan K, Pan ZQ, Valenzuela DM,

DeChiara TM, Stitt TN, Yancopoulos GD, Glass DJ.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, 777 Old Saw Mill River Road, Tarrytown, NY,

10591-6707, USA.

Skeletal muscle adapts to decreases in activity and load by undergoing

atrophy. To identify candidate molecular mediators of muscle atrophy, we

performed transcript profiling. Although many genes were up-regulated in

a single rat model of atrophy, only a small subset was universal in all

atrophy models. Two of these genes encode ubiquitin ligases: Muscle RING

Finger 1(MuRF1), and a gene we designate Muscle Atrophy F-box (MAFbx),

the latter being a member of the SCF family of E3 ubiquitin ligases.

Overexpression of MAFbx in myotubes produced atrophy, whereas mice

deficient in either MAFbx or MuRF1 were found to be resistant to

atrophy. These proteins are potential drug targets for the treatment of

muscle atrophy.