From Development to Regeneration: Insights into Flight Muscle Adaptations from Bat Muscle Cell Lines

ABSTRACT: Skeletal muscle regeneration depends on muscle stem cells, which give rise to myoblasts that drive muscle growth, repair, and maintenance. In bats—the only mammals capable of powered flight—these processes must also support sustained contractile performance under extreme mechanical and metabolic stress. However, the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying bat muscle physiology remain largely unknown. Here (Graphical Abstract), we established the first myoblast cell lines from the pectoralis muscle of Pteronotus mesoamericanus, a highly maneuverable aerial insectivore. Using spontaneous self-immortalization and exogenous hTERT/CDK4 overexpression, we generated two stable myoblast lines that retain proliferative capacity and differentiate into contractile myotubes. These cells exhibit frequent spontaneous contractions, suggesting robust functional integrity at the neuromuscular junction. Transcriptomic analysis of native pectoralis tissue revealed enriched expression of muscle metabolism, development, and regeneration, highlighting the regulation of muscle formation and tissue maintenance. Consistent with this profile, the flight muscle is triglyceride-rich, which serves as an important fuel source for energetically demanding processes, including muscle contraction and cellular regeneration. Integration of transcriptomic and metabolic data identified three key metabolic modules—glucose utilization, lipid handling, and nutrient signaling—that likely coordinate ATP production and support metabolic flexibility during the energetic demands of flight and recovery. Together, these cell lines and molecular data provide the first in vitro platform for investigating bat muscle biology and provide new tools for exploring muscle regeneration, metabolic resilience, and comparative muscle physiology.

ORGANISM(S): Pteronotus mesoamericanus

PROVIDER: GSE302800 | GEO | 2025/08/20

REPOSITORIES: GEO