Critical illness impairs coordinated myogenesis: a prospective longitudinal study of skeletal muscle progenitor cell biology using serial muscle biopsies (SATELLITE study)

Description

Adéla Krajčová leads an eight-author team reporting a 2026 prospective study of muscle stem cells in critically ill patients, run under the name SATELLITE. Weakness after intensive care can linger for years, and failed muscle regeneration is a suspect. The team biopsied the thigh muscle of 33 ventilated adults within 72 hours of admission, again at day 7, and again at day 180, comparing them with 20 healthy controls. Isolated satellite cells were tested for growth, differentiation, fusion, and mitochondrial behaviour.

Patients grew profoundly weak within a week and developed insulin resistance, yet satellite cell numbers per fibre matched controls at admission and day 7. Differentiation was briefly impaired at the start, with a fusion index of 68.9 percent against 74.0 percent in control cells on that measure. Fragmented mitochondria tracked with poorer cell growth and strength. By day 180, cell numbers had recovered but proliferation stayed near half of normal in the few survivors who returned.

Catalog record

Source: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/PMC13501688