%0 Journal Article
%T Beneficial impacts of neuromuscular electrical stimulation on muscle structure and function in the zebrafish model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
%A Kilroy EA
%A Ignacz AC
%A Brann KL
%A Schaffer CE
%A Varney D
%A Alrowaished SS
%A Silknitter KJ
%A Miner JN
%A Almaghasilah A
%A Spellen TL
%A Lewis AD
%A Tilbury K
%A King BL
%A Kelley JB
%A Henry CA
%J Elife
%V 11
%N 0
%D 03 2022 24
%M 35324428
%F 8.713
%R 10.7554/eLife.62760
%X Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) allows activation of muscle fibers in the absence of voluntary force generation. NMES could have the potential to promote muscle homeostasis in the context of muscle disease, but the impacts of NMES on diseased muscle are not well understood. We used the zebrafish Duchenne muscular dystrophy (dmd) mutant and a longitudinal design to elucidate the consequences of NMES on muscle health. We designed four neuromuscular stimulation paradigms loosely based on weightlifting regimens. Each paradigm differentially affected neuromuscular structure, function, and survival. Only endurance neuromuscular stimulation (eNMES) improved all outcome measures. We found that eNMES improves muscle and neuromuscular junction morphology, swimming, and survival. Heme oxygenase and integrin alpha7 are required for eNMES-mediated improvement. Our data indicate that neuromuscular stimulation can be beneficial, suggesting that the right type of activity may benefit patients with muscle disease.