2023 Volume 44 Pages 104-111
In the present study, we investigated the role of p62 in exercise-induced adaptation in muscle of experimental autoimmune myositis (EAM) mice, a widely used animal model for polymyositis. C57BL/6J mice were immunized with myosin to induce EAM and subjected to voluntary running exercise for 4 weeks. Voluntary running exercise increased the levels of phospho-p62 and improved endurance performance but not muscle mass and strength in EAM mice. Moreover, EAM was induced in muscle-specific p62 knockout and wild-type littermates mice. The induction of EAM resulted in significant decreases in muscle mass, strength, and endurance performance in wild-type and p62 knockout mice, without any difference between genotypes. These results suggest that voluntary running exercise improves endurance performance in EAM mice independent of p62 function.
