Open AccessPharyngeal Satellite Cells Undergo Myogenesis Under Basal Conditions and Are Required for Pharyngeal Muscle Maintenance
Author(s) -
Randolph Matthew E.,
Phillips Brittany L.,
Choo HyoJung,
Vest Katherine E.,
Vera Yandery,
Pavlath Grace K.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
stem cells
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.159
H-Index - 229
eISSN - 1549-4918
pISSN - 1066-5099
DOI - 10.1002/stem.2098
Subject(s) - pharyngeal muscles , myogenesis , biology , pharynx , myocyte , anatomy , basal (medicine) , swallowing , stem cell , microbiology and biotechnology , endocrinology , medicine , dentistry , insulin
The pharyngeal muscles of the nasal, oral, and laryngeal pharynxes are required for swallowing. Pharyngeal muscles are preferentially affected in some muscular dystrophies yet spared in others. Muscle stem cells, called satellite cells, may be critical factors in the development of pharyngeal muscle disorders; however, very little is known about pharyngeal satellite cells (PSC) and their role in pharyngeal muscles. We show that PSC are distinct from the commonly studied hindlimb satellite cells both transcriptionally and biologically. Under basal conditions PSC proliferate, progress through myogenesis, and fuse with pharyngeal myofibers. Furthermore, PSC exhibit biologic differences dependent on anatomic location in the pharynx. Importantly, PSC are required to maintain myofiber size and myonuclear number in pharyngeal myofibers. Together, these results demonstrate that PSC are critical for pharyngeal muscle maintenance and suggest that satellite cell impairment could contribute to pharyngeal muscle pathology associated with various muscular dystrophies and aging. S tem C ells 2015;33:3581–3595