Skeletal muscle in a dish: towards making skeletal muscle in vitro

Abstract

Skeletal muscle is the most abundant tissue in the human body, playing a critical role in numerous physiological functions. Over the past few decades, our understanding of skeletal muscle function and its associated diseases has significantly progressed, largely due to the development of advanced in vitro models. These sophisticated systems have become vital for studying stem cell-based regenerative medicine, testing new therapeutic strategies, and investigating the mechanisms underlying both healthy and diseased muscle states.

In this thesis, we explored various facets of recreating human skeletal muscle in vitro. Our research ranged from describing the presence of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) in the differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to pio¬neering innovative materials for in vitro applications. Additionally, we evaluated advanced 3D models within the context of skeletal muscle disease, advancing our understanding of this complex tissue