Loss of MICU1, a key regulator of calcium balance in cells, was seen to affect muscle function and repair in a study in mice and cells from people lacking this mitochondrial protein. These findings support the involvement of MICU1 in neuromuscular disorders, its researchers said, and its potential as a…

Measuring the physical strength of individual cells is now 100 times faster with a new device called FLECS developed by researchers at UCLA and Rutgers University. FLECS allows researchers to measure the strength of thousands of individual cells at a time and could make it easier for them…

In a recent paper entitled “Lipogenesis mitigates dysregulated sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium uptake in muscular dystrophy”published in the Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) – Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids journal, U.S. researchers unveiled a relationship between defective lipid biosynthesis and muscle weakness in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

A study recently published in the journal Scientific Reports reported the development of a novel in vitro model of the early pathogenesis of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) using stem cells. The study is entitled “Early pathogenesis of Duchenne muscular dystrophy modelled in patient-derived human…

New discoveries in the laboratory are leading to exciting, new possibilities for developing the next generation of Muscular dystrophy therapies. Recently, researchers found that by targeting muscle repair, rather than that the genetic defect that is the underlying cause for muscular dystrophy, they may be able to treat the…

Clinical stage biopharmaceutical company Akashi Therapeutics recently acquired the rights for a peptide therapy to regulate the calcium levels in the muscles, a symptom experienced by Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) patients that causes loss of function and other pathologies. The treatment, called GsMTx-4, was developed by the Buffalo start-up Tonus Therapeutics, based…