LAUSR

ABSTRACT PGC-1α has been considered as an important mediator of functional capacity of muscle. Our previous study indicated that the mRNA level of PGC-1α increased in muscle during Schizothorax prenanti (S. prenanti) growth. To understand the biological significance of PGC-1α up-regulation, S. prenanti myosatellite cells were isolated and the function of PGC-1α in myoblast differentiation was further investigated. The results indicated that PGC-1α over-expressing transfectants fused to form myotubes with higher mRNA level of myosin heavy chain isoform I (MyHCI). No obvious differentiation was observed in PGC-1α-targeted shRNA-transfected cells with a marked decrement of MyHCI expression. Furthermore, S. prenanti PGC-1α increased the expression of MyoD and MyoG, which controlled the commitment of precursor cells to myotubes. In contrast, the levels of MyoD and MyoG mRNA were down-regulated with shRNA-targeting PGC-1α transfection. These investigations indicate that PGC-1α is associated with myoblast differentiation and it elevates MyoD and MyoG expression levels in S. prenanti myoblast cells.