Muscle Stem Cells Get a New Look: Dynamic Cellular Projections As Sensors of the Stem Cell Niche

Mechanisms whereby quiescent stem cells sense tissue injury and transition to an activated state are largely unknown. Quiescent skeletal muscle stem cells (MuSCs) have elaborate, heterogeneous projections that rapidly retract in response to muscle injury; the cytoskeletal changes associated with retraction in turn promote downstream MuSC activation events. MuSC projections may therefore provide a surveillance function for muscle damage as direct sensors of their niche environment. These concepts may extend to other types of quiescent stem cells.

Speaker: Robert Krauss, ICahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai