Virtual muscle

Virtual muscle is the research project the aim of which is to build a modular mathematical model linking metabolic processes with regulation of gene expression in skeletal muscle in response to multidirectional stresses: adaptation of the muscle to unloading (sharp decrease of the activity) with the subsequent readaptation to normal conditions as well as an adaptation to elevated level of the activity (single or regular physical exercise). Analysis of the published models showed that the most significant limitation of the models is that they do not account for detailed interconnetction between signaling pathways activated by physiological stresses and downstream changes on coupled transcriptional and metabolic levels using positive and negative feedbacks. A search of coupling pathways between metabolic processes associated with aerobic exercise and regulation of gene expression has been conducted and demonstrated that putative primary messengers with additional kinases/phosphatases activated by the exercise-induced signal initiate signaling cascades leading to the regulation of gene expression. Within the context of modeling the next pathways in skeletal muscle need to be taken into consideration: AMPK, calmodulin/calcineurin, IGF and NFkB-Tumour necrosis factor-а (TNFa) signalling pathways. To determine the kinetic parameters and validate the model essential quantitative data on metabolic processes within the skeletal muscle have been gathered and presented on the page, while the page has been created to accumulate the information about developed databases with transcriptomics data on skeletal muscle activity.