Morphological and molecular aspects of immobilization-induced muscle atrophy in rats at different stages of postnatal development: the role of autophagy

Immobilization induces muscle maladaptations at different stages of postnatal development, but the cellular mechanisms involved in such effects are unclear. Our data show that the alterations in muscle proteostasis during immobilization occur in age-independent and -dependent manners and muscle disorders are aggravated by autophagy blockade with colchicine, inducing a myopathic profile. This understanding may help us optimize treatment outcomes in immobilized adults and infants and encourages the testing of different autophagy inhibitors in muscle atrophy.