The role of muscle and circulatory microRNAs as regulators and biomarkers of muscle function.

Abstract

Skeletal muscle is an abundant tissue type with critical roles in locomotion, force production and whole body energy regulation. Skeletal muscle mass and function are adaptively regulated by multiple stimuli including physical loading (exercise), nutrient intake (protein supplementation) and lifestyle events (injury and unloading). MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNAs with the capacity to target specific mRNAs for breakdown and thereby alter the rate and extent of protein expression. Therefore, miRNAs may explain often observed disconnects between gene and protein expression and may regulate key mechanisms underpinning muscle phenotype. The studies in this thesis used a targeted qRT-PCR approach to address the role of muscle regulatory miRNAs in multiple models.