Computational assessment of transport distances in living skeletal muscle fibers studied in situ

Abstract

Transport distances in skeletal muscle fibers are mitigated by these cells having multiple nuclei. We have studied mouse living slow (soleus) and fast (extensor digitorum longus) muscle fibers in situ and determined cellular dimensions and the positions of all the nuclei within fiber segments. We modelled the effect of placing nuclei optimally and randomly using the nuclei as the origin of a transportation network. It appeared that an equidistant positioning of nuclei minimizes transport distances along the surface for both muscles. In the soleus muscle however, which were richer in nuclei, positioning of nuclei to reduce transport distances to the cytoplasm were of less importance, and these fibers exhibit a pattern not statistically different from a random positioning of nuclei. Together, these results highlight the importance of spatially distribute nuclei to minimize transport distances to the surface when nuclear density is low, while it appears that the distribution are of less importance at higher nuclear densities.