Does Epigenetic Silencing Affect Skeletal Muscle Angiogenesis?

The skeletal muscle is a highly plastic tissue that is able to adapt to changes from different stressors such as exercise. Angiogenesis is the formation of new capillaries from existing vessels; allowing for better blood flow to the working skeletal muscles. Epigenetic modifications support changes in gene expression to allow for skeletal muscle adaptations. How histone silencing marks regulate skeletal muscle adaptations through angiogenesis in response to training is yet to be explored in depth. My thesis aims to research how histone silencing marks regulate skeletal muscle angiogenesis through MDM2 and EZH2, in the context of exercise. In C57BL6 female mice, 9 weeks of endurance training increased H3K27me3 protein global abundance. With an acute bout of exercise in 14 days trained, H3K27me3 decreased. Angiogenic gene Kdr mRNA expression decreased after 9 weeks of endurance training. Overall, exercise protocols affect the histone modifications and histone modifiers in the skeletal muscle.