ORONO, Maine, June 8 -- University of Maine issued the following news release:
Jared Talbot
University of Maine researchers have published new findings about how muscles form, why certain muscle diseases develop and why symptoms may not appear until years after muscle degeneration begins.
The study, published in Nature Communications, focuses on a protein called Mylpf that is essential for the development of fast-twitch muscle fibers, which propel rapid, powerful movements like sprinting and lifting heavy weights. When Mylpf does not form correctly, muscles completely lose their ability to contract.
"Mylpf is sort of the linchpin that makes the whole muscle fiber work," said Jared Talbot, the project's principal investigator and an asso...