Data-Modeling Identifies Conflicting Signaling Axes Governing Myoblast Proliferation and Differentiation Responses to Diverse Ligand Stimuli

Introduction Skeletal muscle tissue development and regeneration relies on the proliferation, maturation and fusion of muscle progenitor cells (myoblasts), which arise transiently from muscle stem cells (satellite cells). Following muscle damage, myoblasts proliferate and differentiate in response to temporally-varying inflammatory cytokines, growth factors, and extracellular matrix cues, which stimulate a shared network of intracellular signaling pathways. Here we present an integrated data-modeling approach to elucidate synergies and antagonisms among proliferation and differentiation signaling axes in myoblasts stimulated by regeneration-associated ligands.