Mild aerobic training with blood flow restriction increases the hypertrophy index and MuSK in both slow and fast muscles of old rats: Role of PGC-1α.

Aims: Existing evidence emphasize the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in sarcopenia which is revealed as loss of skeletal muscle mass and neuromuscular junction remodeling. We assessed the effect of low-intensity aerobic training along with blood flow restriction on muscle hypertrophy index, muscle-specific kinase (MuSK), a pivotal protein of the neuromuscular junction and Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1-alpha (PGC-1α) in aged male rats.

Main Methods: Animals groups were control (CTL), sham (Sh), leg blood flow restriction (BFR), exercise (Ex), sham + exercise (Sh + Ex), and BFR plus exercise (BFR + Ex) groups. The exercise groups were trained with low intensity exercise for 10 weeks. 48 h after the last training session, animals were sacrificed under anesthesia. Soleus and EDL muscles were isolated, hypertrophy index was estimated and MuSK and PGC-1α were measured by western blot method.

Key Findings: Hypertrophy index enhanced in soleus and Extensor digitorum longus (EDL) muscles of BFR + Ex group (P < 0.01 versus CTL and Sh groups, and P < 0.001 versus other groups). The MuSK protein of soleus and EDL muscles increased in BFR + Ex group (P < 0.01 and P < 0.001, respectively) in comparison with CTL and Sh groups. In BFR + Ex group, the PGC-1α protein increased in both soleus and EDL (P < 0.001 compared to other groups). Also the PGC-1α of soleus muscle was higher in Ex and Sh + Ex groups versus CTL and Sh groups (P < 0.05).

Significance: Findings suggest that low endurance exercise plus BFR improves the MuSK and hypertrophy index of both slow and fast muscles of elderly rats probably through the rise of PGC-1α expression.