Project R-14939

A muscle platform for REVAL: an essential contribution to rehabilitation research! (Research)

Dysfunctional skeletal muscle is a hallmark of many (chronic) diseases. This is often assessed on a functional or macroscopic level. Assessing skeletal muscle tissue on a microscopic level allows us to understand structural changes. Skeletal muscle mass and composition is dependent on muscle fibre number and size. Subsequently, the decline in muscle mass with ageing or in pathophysiological conditions can be characterised by a decrease in total fibre number, average fibre size, or both. Understanding changes in muscle fibre morphology can be essential in developing rehabilitation programs. Observing changes on macroscopic or microscopic levels does not explain why or how changes (e.g. muscle atrophy) occur. To understand the process of disease or age-related muscle atrophy, it is essential to unravel underlying mechanisms. Molecular biological analysis, can help understand these mechanisms. Within REVAL, the research group of the faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences at UHasselt, there is continuous research on (p)rehabilitation in healthy young, older, or clinically compromised individuals. Access to an in-house fundamental muscle platform, with state-of-the art equipment, enables us to strengthen our research, by giving us the opportunity to add a fundamental component to new studies within our faculty.

01 May 2024 - 30 April 2028