ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc alleviates muscle dysfunction and comorbidities in murine models of neuromuscular disorders
Jia Li, … , Ravindra Kumar, Rajasekhar N.V.S. Suragani
Jia Li, … , Ravindra Kumar, Rajasekhar N.V.S. Suragani
Published February 15, 2021
Citation Information: J Clin Invest. 2021;131(4):e138634. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI138634.
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Research Article Muscle biology Neuroscience

ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc alleviates muscle dysfunction and comorbidities in murine models of neuromuscular disorders

Abstract

Patients with neuromuscular disorders suffer from a lack of treatment options for skeletal muscle weakness and disease comorbidities. Here, we introduce as a potential therapeutic agent a heterodimeric ligand-trapping fusion protein, ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc, which comprises extracellular domains of activin-like kinase 4 (ALK4) and activin receptor type IIB (ActRIIB), a naturally occurring pair of type I and II receptors belonging to the TGF-β superfamily. By surface plasmon resonance (SPR), ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc exhibited a ligand binding profile distinctly different from that of its homodimeric variant ActRIIB-Fc, sequestering ActRIIB ligands known to inhibit muscle growth but not trapping the vascular regulatory ligand bone morphogenetic protein 9 (BMP9). ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc and ActRIIB-Fc administered to mice exerted differential effects — concordant with SPR results — on vessel outgrowth in a retinal explant assay. ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc induced a systemic increase in muscle mass and function in wild-type mice and in murine models of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and disuse atrophy. Importantly, ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc improved neuromuscular junction abnormalities in murine models of DMD and presymptomatic ALS and alleviated acute muscle fibrosis in a DMD model. Furthermore, in combination therapy ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc increased the efficacy of antisense oligonucleotide M12-PMO on dystrophin expression and skeletal muscle endurance in an aged DMD model. ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc shows promise as a therapeutic agent, alone or in combination with dystrophin rescue therapy, to alleviate muscle weakness and comorbidities of neuromuscular disorders.

Authors

Jia Li, Maureen Fredericks, Marishka Cannell, Kathryn Wang, Dianne Sako, Michelle C. Maguire, Rosa Grenha, Katia Liharska, Lavanya Krishnan, Troy Bloom, Elitza P. Belcheva, Pedro A. Martinez, Roselyne Castonguay, Sarah Keates, Mark J. Alexander, Hyunwoo Choi, Asya V. Grinberg, R. Scott Pearsall, Paul Oh, Ravindra Kumar, Rajasekhar N.V.S. Suragani

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Figure 5

ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc alleviates acute fibrosis in a mouse model of DMD.

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ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc alleviates acute fibrosis in a mouse model of DMD. Five-...
Five-week-old BL10.mdx mice with mechanically induced fibrosis in the TA muscle were treated with ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc (10 mg/kg) or vehicle (PBS) twice weekly for 4 weeks. (A) TA muscle sections stained with Picrosirius red. Scale bars: 50 μm. (B) Percentage area in TA sections occupied by fibrotic tissue. Data are means ± SEM (n = 4–7). Group differences were assessed by 1-way ANOVA with Tukey’s adjustment. ***P < 0.001. For respiratory studies, 7-month-old D2.mdx mice were injected s.c. with ActRIIB:ALK4-Fc (10 mg/kg) or vehicle (PBS) twice weekly for 4 weeks. (C) Percentage change in tidal volume after exposure to hypoxic stress (10% O2) for 30 minutes. Data are means ± SEM (n = 3–5 per group). Group differences were assessed by 1-way ANOVA with Tukey’s adjustment. **P < 0.01 vs. WT. (D) Specific force generated by diaphragm muscle ex vivo. Data are means ± SEM (n = 6–10 per group). Group differences were assessed by 1-way ANOVA with Tukey’s adjustment. ***P < 0.001.