Skeletal muscle atrophy occurs in different catabolic conditions and mostly accompanied with upregulation of Muscle ring finger 1 (MuRF1) gene which is one of the master regulatory genes in muscle atrophy. Taurine amino acid is widely distributed in different tissues and has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. This study aimed to investigate the potential influence of taurine on muscle atrophy induced by reduced mechanical loading. Twenty-eight Albino mice were used, and divided equally into four groups: group I (control); group II (immobilization); group III (immobilization + taurine); and group IV (taurine). Quadriceps muscle sections were taken for histopathology, immunohistochemical analysis of caspase 3 expression, and qRT-PCR of MuRF1 gene. Our data revealed Zenker necrosis associated with axonal injury of the nerve trunk of the immobilized muscle together with increase of caspase 3 expression and upregulation of MuRF1 gene. While, taurine supplementation alleviated the muscular and neural tissues damage associated with disuse skeletal muscle atrophy through downregulation of MuRF1 gene and decrease of tissue caspase 3 expression. In conclusion, taurine may be helpful to counteract apoptosis and up-regulated MuRF1 gene expression related to muscle atrophy, which might be hopeful for a large number of patients.
Keywords: Caspase 3; MuRF1; Muscle atrophy; Proteolysis; Taurine.