The Role of the Notch Signaling Pathway in Myogenesis

Among other functions, the Notch signaling prevents the differentiation [4] of muscle progenitor cells into mature muscle in animals. The Notch signaling pathway is a pathway in animals by which two adjacent cells within an organism use a protein named Notch to mechanically interact with each other. Myogenesis is the formation of muscle that occurs throughout an animal's development, from embryo to the end of life. Throughout the life of an organism, Notch signaling prevents the differentiation [4] of muscle progenitor cells into muscle cells. Such preventions help maintain populations of progenitor cells that can remain dormant until the growth or regeneration of muscle is necessary, at which point the Notch signal to muscle progenitor cells is disrupted, and those progenitor cells differentiate into myotubes and eventually mature muscle. Without Notch signaling, myogenesis proceeds prematurely and dissipates before mature muscle can form.