Fast skeletal muscle troponin activator CK-2066260 mitigates skeletal muscle weakness independently of the underlying cause.

BACKGROUND: Muscle weakness is a common symptom in numerous diseases and a regularly occurring problem associated with ageing. Prolonged low-frequency force depression (PLFFD) is a form of exercise-induced skeletal muscle weakness observed after exercise. Three different intramuscular mechanisms underlying PLFFD have been identified: decreased sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release, decreased myofibrillar Ca2+ sensitivity, and myofibrillar dysfunction. We here used these three forms of PLFFD as models to study the effectiveness of a fast skeletal muscle troponin activator, CK-2066260, to mitigate muscle weakness.

METHODS: Experiments were performed on intact single muscle fibres or fibre bundles from mouse flexor digitorum brevis, which were stimulated with electrical current pulses, while force and the free cytosolic [Ca2+ ] ([Ca2+ ]i ) were measured. PLFFD was induced by three different stimulation protocols: (i) repeated isometric contractions at low intensity (350 ms tetani given every 5 s for 100 contractions); (ii) repeated isometric contractions at high intensity (250 ms tetani given every 0.5 s for 300 contractions); and (iii) repeated eccentric contractions (350 ms tetani with 20% length increase given every 20 s for 10 contractions). The extent and cause of PLFFD were assessed by comparing the force-[Ca2+ ]i relationship at low (30 Hz) and high (120 Hz) stimulation frequencies before (control) and 30 min after induction of PLFFD, and after an additional 5 min of rest in the presence of CK-2066260 (10 μM).

RESULTS: Prolonged low-frequency force depression following low-intensity and high-intensity fatiguing contractions was predominantly due to decreased sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release and decreased myofibrillar Ca2+ sensitivity, respectively. CK-2066260 exposure resulted in marked increases in 30 Hz force from 52 ± 16% to 151 ± 13% and from 6 ± 4% to 98 ± 40% of controls with low-intensity and high-intensity contractions, respectively. Following repeated eccentric contractions, PLFFD was mainly due to myofibrillar dysfunction, and it was not fully reversed by CK-2066260 with 30 Hz force increasing from 48 ± 8% to 76 ± 6% of the control.

CONCLUSIONS: The fast skeletal muscle troponin activator CK-2066260 effectively mitigates muscle weakness, especially when it is caused by impaired activation of the myofibrillar contractile machinery due to either decreased sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release or reduced myofibrillar Ca2+ sensitivity.