Inter- and intra-muscle comparisons of MAPK mechanosensitivity: evidence for the absence of fibre-type dependency

Muscle phenotype is regulated by mechanical forces. However, it is not well understood how these forces are translated into intracellular signalling that influences gene expression. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that muscles displaying a wide range of metabolic profiles and fibre-type composition exhibit differences in the detection and transmission of mechanical stimuli. A mechanical challenge in the form of passive stretch normalized to 3 N/g muscle weight was applied to the rat extensor digitorum longus (EDL), soleus (SOL), and plantaris (PLN) in situ for 5 min, following which activities of the mechanically-responsive p54 c-jun NH(2)-terminal kinase (JNK) and extracellular-regulated kinase (ERK) 1/2 were measured. EDL, SOL, and PLN were not different in their stretch-induced JNK (4.5, 5.2 and 6-fold baseline, respectively) or ERK (2.2, 2.2 and 1.9-fold baseline, respectively) responses, in spite of differing fibre-type compositions. The medial gastrocnemius (MG), a compartmentalized muscle with red (MGr) and white (MGw) regions, was subjected to the same normalized mechanical stretch protocol. The resulting JNK and ERK activities were significantly higher in MGr (13 and 4.5-fold baseline, respectively) than in MGw (5 and 1.2-fold baseline, respectively) and all other muscles. In contrast to stimulation by passive stretch, stimulation of the MG by isometric contractile activity did not result in a heterogeneous response between compartments. This study demonstrates an absence of difference among muscles of varying phenotype in their ability to transmit mechanical stimuli to the mitogen-activated protein kinase signalling pathways, and hence in their mechanosensitivity. Furthermore, the results highlight the importance of considering aspects of the functional organization of different muscles, such as compartmentalization and architecture, when studying mechanical signalling in vivo.