ArticleMolecular medicine (Cambridge, Mass.)2025
Deletion of fibro-adipogenic progenitors-specific follistatin impairs muscle function and accelerates skeletal muscle atrophy in obese mice.
Article in Molecular medicine (Cambridge, Mass.), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Review
- Exercise Intensity and Circulating Exerkine Responses: A Narrative Review of Selected Molecules.Biomolecules · 2026Review
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Authors and funding
27 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundFollistatin is a potent regulator of various TGF-β superfamily members, including myostatin (MSTN) and activin A. Previous studies have shown that follistatin is crucial in enhancing myogenesis during acute muscle injury. The mechanism by which fibro-adipogenic progenitors (FAPs)-specific follistatin influences muscle homeostasis in obese mice remains unknown. Therefore, we investigated the physiological role of follistatin in PDGFRα-positive FAPs in the regulation of muscle homeostasis and exercise in obese mice.
methodsA PDGFRα-specific follistatin knockout (follistatin KO) mouse model was generated using PDGFRα-GFP-CreER
resultsWe showed that follistatin KO mice had reduced expression of Fst in skeletal muscle and white adipose tissue. We also showed that follistatin KO mice exhibited decreased exercise performance and altered skeletal homeostasis during obesity. Deletion of follistatin in FAPs activated the MSTN: Activin A/SMADs signaling pathways, which negatively impacted muscle homeostasis. Furthermore, follistatin KO mice showed reduced muscle mass, increased muscle degradation, and atrophic myofibers. Mitochondrial biogenesis, oxidative phosphorylation, and fatty acid oxidation were also altered in the skeletal muscles of follistatin KO mice.
conclusionFollistatin plays a protective role in mice by maintaining the metabolic health of skeletal muscles; it restores muscle function during HFD challenge, thereby reducing diet-induced obesity-related complications.
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