Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Yonsei University, 50 Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, 03722, Korea.
Yonsei University Health System, Seoul, 03722, Korea.
Sci Rep. 2023 Oct 13;13(1):17371. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-44748-6.
Sarcopenia is a progressive loss of muscle mass and strength that is associated with increasing the risk of falls, musculoskeletal diseases, and chronic metabolic diseases. However, the animal models adopted to study sarcopenia face limitations since the functional tests conducted on human cannot be directly adapted to animals because the animals do not follow instructions. Moreover, current preclinical research tools for muscle function assessment, such as the rotarod, grip strength, and treadmill, have limitations, including low-intensity simple movements, evaluator subjectivity, and limited power indicators. Hence, in this study, we present a new jumping-power assessment tool in a preclinical rodent model to demonstrate muscle functions. To overcome the light weight and command issues in the rodent model, we developed an electrical stimulation-assisted jump power assessment device. Precisely, the device utilizes a load cell with a 0.1 g resolution and a 50 points/s data acquisition rate to capture the short period of the mouse jump. Additionally, interdigitated electrodes are used to electrically stimulate the mice and make them jump. While our primary focus in this article is the validation of the newly developed jump power assessment device, it is worth noting that this tool has several potential utilities. These include the phenotypic comparison of sarcopenia models, the exploration of muscle function reduction mechanisms, muscle function-related blood biomarkers, and the evaluation of drug intervention effects.
肌肉减少症是一种与跌倒、肌肉骨骼疾病和慢性代谢性疾病风险增加相关的肌肉质量和力量的进行性丧失。然而，用于研究肌肉减少症的动物模型存在局限性，因为不能直接将对人类进行的功能测试应用于动物，因为动物不会听从指令。此外，目前用于肌肉功能评估的临床前研究工具，如转棒、握力和跑步机，都存在局限性，包括低强度的简单运动、评估者的主观性和有限的功率指标。因此，在这项研究中，我们提出了一种新的跳跃力量评估工具，用于评估临床前啮齿动物模型中的肌肉功能。为了克服啮齿动物模型中的重量轻和指令问题，我们开发了一种电刺激辅助跳跃力量评估设备。具体来说，该设备使用具有 0.1g 分辨率和 50 点/秒数据采集率的称重传感器来捕获小鼠跳跃的短暂时间。此外，使用叉指电极对小鼠进行电刺激，使其跳跃。虽然我们在本文中的主要关注点是新开发的跳跃力量评估设备的验证，但值得注意的是，该工具具有几个潜在的用途。这些用途包括肌肉减少症模型的表型比较、肌肉功能降低机制的探索、与肌肉功能相关的血液生物标志物以及药物干预效果的评估。
