Deficiency of MMP-10 Aggravates the Diseased Phenotype of Aged Dystrophic Mice

oleh: Arantxa Baraibar-Churio, Míriam Bobadilla, Florencio J. D. Machado, Neira Sáinz, Carmen Roncal, Gloria Abizanda, Felipe Prósper, Josune Orbe, Ana Pérez-Ruiz

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2021-12-01

Deskripsi

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) have been implicated in the progression of muscular dystrophy, and recent studies have reported the role of MMP-10 in skeletal muscle pathology of young dystrophic mice. Nevertheless, its involvement in dystrophin-deficient hearts remains unexplored. Here, we aimed to investigate the involvement of MMP-10 in the progression of severe muscular dystrophy and to characterize MMP-10 loss in skeletal and cardiac muscles of aged dystrophic mice. We examined the histopathological effect of MMP-10 ablation in aged <i>mdx</i> mice, both in the hind limb muscles and heart tissues. We found that MMP-10 loss compromises survival rates of aged <i>mdx</i> mice, with skeletal and cardiac muscles developing a chronic inflammatory response. Our findings indicate that MMP-10 is implicated in severe muscular dystrophy progression, thus identifying a new area of research that could lead to future therapies for dystrophic muscles.