Restriction of dietary energy and protein induces molecular changes in young porcine skeletal muscles

Little is known about the molecular changes in response to dietary restriction (energy and/or protein) in young growing skeletal muscles. To profile such changes and to gain insights into the signaling molecules that could mediate the diet effects, a dedicated porcine skeletal muscle cDNA-microarray approach was used to characterize differential muscle gene expression between conventionally fed and diet-restricted (20% less protein and 7% less energy) growing pigs, reared from 9 to 21 wk of age. In both red and white muscles, diet restriction resulted in the accumulation of significantly more intramuscular fat, and in the increased expression of genes involved in substrate (protein, glycogen, and lipid) turnover, in translation and mitochondrial function, and in raising glycolytic and oxidative phosphorylation potentials. The unexpected increase in intramuscular lipids in diet-restricted growing pigs could have important health implications for restricted diets in childhood. Despite reduced circulating insulin, more genes, including several novel growth modulatory genes, had higher expression levels, indicating that the cellular response to dietary restriction is an active process. One such responsive gene, P311, was most highly expressed in striated muscles and had a differentiation-dependent increase of expression in murine C2C12 cells, suggesting a role in differentiation/postdifferentiation phenotype determination.