The conventional belief that mammalian cells fare better in an environment of high sugar levels has been debunked by new research from researchers at Tokyo Metropolitan University.

Their study, entitled "Excess Glucose Impedes the Proliferation of Skeletal Muscle Satellite Cells Under Adherent Culture Conditions" published in the Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology, suggests that the key elements of muscle repair known as muscle satellite cells proliferate better in low sugar environments.

The researchers were able to produce pure cultures of skeletal muscle satellite cells in ultra-low glucose environments. Their findings could potentially boost biomedical research on muscle repair.

Low Sugar Levels Might Help Muscle Repair Contrary to Popular Belief [STUDY]
(Photo: Pixabay)
Low Sugar Levels Might Help Muscle Repair Contrary to Popular Belief [STUDY]

Higher Glucose Levels Impede Muscle Repair Process

For the past years, scientists have been researching how muscle repair happens at a cellular level.

Its key element, the skeletal muscle satellite cells, plays a significant role in muscle repair. They are found between two layers of sheathing that cover the myofiber cells. When myofiber cells are damaged, satellite cells are activated by multiplying and fusing with myofiber cells to repair the damage.

According to The Company of Biologists, skeletal muscle satellite cells could self-renew when grafted which is why these cells are considered to be a special type of stem cells. Their role is not only in muscle repair but also in maintaining muscle mass in the body.

The study, led by Assistant Professor Yasuro Furuichi, Associate Professor Yasuko Manabe, and Professor Nobuharu L Fujii, showed that higher levels of glucose could adversely affect the rate at which satellite cells grow, EurekAlert! reported.

Based on the multiplying satellite cells in the petri dishes in a growth medium, their study is contrary to the conventional wisdom that glucose is needed to be converted to ATP that will fuel cellular activity. But they were able to confirm that these cells strive and multiply faster in lower sugar levels.

Furthermore, they also confirmed that this mechanism does not apply to all types of cells, which researchers used to their advantage.

When doing experiments with high glucose media, the researchers observed that satellite cells always end up as a mixture because other cell types also multiply. But they were able to create a solution by keeping glucose levels low so satellite cells could multiply but other cell types could not, creating a pure culture of skeletal muscle satellites.

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Could Probably Explain What Causes Diabetes Muscle Loss

The study could help in studying satellite cells in various settings, such as regenerative medicine. When they added a glucose digesting enzyme that further lowers the sugar levels of the medium they used, they noted that the cells seemed to fare just fine and multiplied normally, Yahoo! Style reported.

This led them to the conclusion that these special type of stem cells could get their energy from a different source, but as to what it is, scientists are still unsure.

However, they believe that their findings could help explain what causes diabetes muscle loss. They said that the sugar levels used in previous studies are those from diabetic patients and their findings may have significant implications as to how to keep muscles healthier even as people grow old.

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