JunB transcription factor maintains skeletal muscle mass and promotes hypertrophy.
Raffaello, Anna ; Milan, Giulia ; Masiero, Eva ; et al. ; - ASI Sponsor
Oct - 2010
ISSN : 1540-8140 ;
journal : The Journal of cell biology

Issue : 1
type: Article Journal

Abstract
The size of skeletal muscle cells is precisely regulated by intracellular signaling networks that determine the balance between overall rates of protein synthesis and degradation. Myofiber growth and protein synthesis are stimulated by the IGF-1/Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway. In this study, we show that the transcription factor JunB is also a major determinant of whether adult muscles grow or atrophy. We found that in atrophying myotubes, JunB is excluded from the nucleus and that decreasing JunB expression by RNA interference in adult muscles causes atrophy. Furthermore, JunB overexpression induces hypertrophy without affecting satellite cell proliferation and stimulated protein synthesis independently of the Akt/mTOR pathway. When JunB is transfected into denervated muscles, fiber atrophy is prevented. JunB blocks FoxO3 binding to atrogin-1 and MuRF-1 promoters and thus reduces protein breakdown. Therefore, JunB is important not only in dividing populations but also in adult muscle, where it is required for the maintenance of muscle size and can induce rapid hypertrophy and block atrophy.

keywords : Animals,Forkhead Transcription Factors,Forkhead Transcription Factors: metabolism,Genetic,Hypertrophy,Mice,Muscle,Muscle Fibers,Muscle Proteins,Muscle Proteins: genetics,Muscle Proteins: metabolism,Muscular Atrophy,Muscular Atrophy: metabolism,Promoter Regions,Protein Biosynthesis,Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun,Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-jun: physiology,SKP Cullin F-Box Protein Ligases,SKP Cullin F-Box Protein Ligases: genetics,SKP Cullin F-Box Protein Ligases: metabolism,Signal Transduction,Skeletal,Skeletal: cytology,Skeletal: growth \& development,Skeletal: metabolism,Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases,Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases: metabolism