Reciprocal changes in myosin isoform expression in rabbit fast skeletal muscle resulting from the application and removal of chronic electrical stimulation

Abstract

Chronic indirect electrical stimulation of adult mammalian skeletal muscle brings about a transformation from the fast-twitch to the slow-twitch type. Underlying this transformation there is a sequence of profound changes in the expression of proteins involved in all the major molecular systems of the muscle. These include qualitative changes in the expression of myosin light and heavy chain isoforms. The time course of these changes has been studied in some detail at the protein level, both during chronic stimulation and during the recovery process that follows the cessation of stimulation. Here we report on the use of cDNA probes to study corresponding changes in myosin heavy chain (MHC) and light chain (MLC) mRNAs in rabbit fast-twitch muscles during continuous electrical stimulation at 10 Hz and during the first 12 days of recovery after cessation of 6 weeks of stimulation. At an early stage of the response to stimulation, fast MHC mRNA is replaced by slow MHC mRNA. During recovery this process occurs in reverse but takes longer. Broadly similar changes are seen for MLC mRNAs, although the time course is somewhat different. These experiments contribute to a growing body of evidence that many of the protein changes induced by chronic stimulation are the result of regulatory events that take place at a pre-translational level.