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. 2017 Oct 31;8(63):107011-107021.
doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.22205. eCollection 2017 Dec 5.

Alteration of muscle fiber characteristics and the AMPK-SIRT1-PGC-1α axis in skeletal muscle of growing pigs fed low-protein diets with varying branched-chain amino acid ratios

Yehui Duan  1   2 , Fengna Li  1   3 , Wenlong Wang  4 , Qiuping Guo  1   2 , Chaoyue Wen  4 , Yulong Yin  1   4
Affiliations

Alteration of muscle fiber characteristics and the AMPK-SIRT1-PGC-1α axis in skeletal muscle of growing pigs fed low-protein diets with varying branched-chain amino acid ratios

Yehui Duan et al. Oncotarget. .

Abstract

There mainly exists four major myosin heavy chains (MyHC) (i.e., I, IIa, IIx, and IIb) in growing pigs. The current study aimed to explore the effects of low-protein diets supplemented with varying branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) on muscle fiber characteristics and the AMPK-SIRT1-PGC-1α axis in skeletal muscles. Forty growing pigs (9.85 ± 0.35 kg) were allotted to 5 groups and fed with diets supplemented with varying leucine: isoleucine: valine ratios: 1:0.51:0.63 (20% crude protein, CP), 1:1:1 (17% CP), 1:0.75:0.75 (17% CP), 1:0.51:0.63 (17% CP), and 1:0.25:0.25 (17% CP), respectively. The skeletal muscles of different muscle fiber composition, that is, longissimus dorsi muscle (LM, a fast-twitch glycolytic muscle), biceps femoris muscle (BM, a mixed slow- and fast-twitch oxido-glycolytic muscle), and psoas major muscle (PM, a slow-twitch oxidative muscle) were collected and analyzed. Results showed that relative to the control group (1:0.51:0.63, 20% CP), the low-protein diets with the leucine: isoleucine: valine ratio ranging from 1:0.75:0.75 to 1:0.25:0.25 especially augmented the mRNA and protein abundance of MyHC I fibers in BM and lowered the mRNA abundance of MyHC IIb particularly in LM (P < 0.05), with a concurrent increase in the activation of AMPK and the mRNA abundance of SIRT and PGC-1α in BM (P < 0.05). The results reveal that low-protein diets supplemented with optimal BCAA ratio, i.e. 1:0.75:0.75-1:0.25:0.25, induce muscle more oxidative especially in oxido-glycolytic skeletal muscle of growing pigs. These effects are likely associated with the activation of the AMPK-SIRT1-PGC-1α axis.

Keywords: branched-chain amino acids; energy axis; growing pigs; muscle fiber type.

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Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Protein abundance levels of MyCH I, MyCH IIa, and p/t-SIRT1, p/t-AMPKα, PGC-1α in the longissimus dorsi muscle, biceps femoris muscle, and psoas major muscle of growing pigs fed low-protein diets supplemented with varying BCAA ratios
Data were normalized to the value of corresponding total protein or the inner control β-actin and expressed as means ± SE (n = 8). Values within a row with different superscripts differ significantly (P < 0.05).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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