Differential expression of myosin heavy chain isoforms in the masticatory muscles of dystrophin-deficient mice

Abstract

The dystrophin-deficient mouse (mdx) is a homologue animal model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and is characterized by slowly progressive muscle weakness accompanied by changes in myosin heavy chain (MyHC) composition. It is likely that the masticatory muscles undergo similar changes. The aim of this study was to examine the masticatory muscles (masseter, temporal, tongue, and soleus) of 100-day-old mdx and control mice (n = 8-10), and the fibre type distribution (by immunohistochemistry) as well as the expression of the corresponding MyHC messenger RNA (mRNA) (protein and mRNA expression, using Western blot or quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)).