The relationship between the dimensions of the fibres and the number of nuclei during normal growth of skeletal muscle in the domestic fowl

Abstract

Between 0 and 266 days of age the weight of the pectoral and gastrocnemius muscles of chickens increased 300-600-and 40-90-fold respectively depending on the breed and sex. In both muscles the mean cross-sectional area of the fibres and the total number of nuclei (estimated from DNA determination) maintained a constant ratio during growth. This suggests that for individual fibres the cross-sectional area increased in proportion to the number of nuclei. This phenomenon is discussed in relation to current knowledge concerning the mode of growth and multinucleation of skeletal muscle fibres.In the pectoral muscle, between 0 and 266 days, the cross-sectional area of the fibres increased in proportion to the two-thirds power of the muscle weight, which suggests that the length and diameter of the fibres maintained a constant ratio. The same relationship existed for the gastrocnemius for two months, after which the fibre cross-sectional area increased in proportion to the muscle weight, which suggests that the fibre length was then constant.

Growth patterns and nuclear distribution in white muscle fibers from black sea bass, Centropristis striata: evidence for the influence of diffusion

“…These studies emphasized the significance of diffusion of nuclear products and how diffusion constraints may limit the range over which an individual nucleus can influence cellular processes. Because most of the increase in muscle tissue mass typically occurs by hypertrophy rather than hyperplasia, avoiding a metabolically limiting nuclear domain size requires increasing the number of nuclei with increasing fiber volume (Enesco and Puddy, 1964;Moss, 1968;Goldspink, 1964;Stickland et al, 1975;Weatherley et al, 1979;Weatherley and Gill, 1981;Weatherley and Gill, 1985;Allen et al, 1995;Allen et al, 1996;McCall et al, 1998;Roy et al, 1999).…”

Influence of increasing breast meat yield on muscle histology and meat quality in the chicken

“…The difference in muscle mass is generally explained by an increase in the CSA of the myofibre. This radial increase is generally associated with an increase in the total number of fibres (TNF) (Moss, 1968;Hooper, 1978 (Remignon et al, 1995 in the chicken; Fowler et al, 1980 in the quail).…”

Skeletal Muscles Do not Undergo Apoptosis During Either Atrophy or Programmed Cell Death

“…There is substantial data demonstrating that nuclear number does increase with muscle hypertrophy [12][13][14]. These supernumerary nuclei are acquired when lineage-restricted stem cells, typically satellite cells, fuse with the muscle fiber and contribute their nuclei [15].…”