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​Distinguished Prof. Kathy H Myburgh

South African Research Chair Initiative: Integrative Skeletal Muscle Physiology, Biology and Biotechnology 

About the MRG

Our research on the cellular and molecular aspects of muscle regeneration after injury is focused on human muscle satellite cells, small laboratory animal models and cell culture, including primary muscle-specific stem cells. ​We study mechanisms of influencing satellite cells, including the small extracellular vesicles and microRNA.

​The MRG's interests include:

• Acute and long-term adaptations in humans to delayed onset of muscle soreness, with or without training interventions.
• The immune system and connective tissue during the resolution of muscle injury, with the current focus on neutrophils and fibroblasts in an attempt to understand both their positive and negative influences.
• We probe extracellular vesicles dynamics in response to muscle damaging exercise in human volunteers, rats and in cell culture.
• Primary human myoblasts isolated from muscle biopsies are probed for activation and fusion, with a current interest in the pre-fusion protein, Kirrel.
• Cell culture models include co-culture of myoblasts and fibroblasts or neutrophils.  ​
  

The Mission of the MRG is to:

• Develop an international standard research platform, including up to date equipment and techniques.
• Deliver research that is internationally competitive and relevant; locally relevant and of potential benefit to athletes or persons suffering from muscle diseases.
  

OPPORTUNITIES

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT AVAILABLE POSTDOCTORAL POSITIONS OR POSTGRADUATE STUDIES PLEASE CONTACT - khm@sun.ac.za. ​

CURRENT Senior Group Members

​Postdoctoral Fellows ​​​
	Dr Rhys McColl Research areas: Extracellular vesicles characterisation. Skeletal muscle pre-fusion protein, Kirrel: in vitro experiments using different genetic engineering models.
PhD ​​​
	Lisha van Onselen Research area: Lisha's research involves elite runners who will participate in multiple days of high intensity treadmill exercise, with a focus on neutrophil activation, subsequent culture and extracellular vesicle release.
​	​Michael Cowley Research area: Michael's project involves different grades of unilateral eccentric exercise inducing delayed onset muscle soreness. Satellite cell activation status forms the focus of the biopsy analysis
​	​John Hingle Research area: John's project involves determining the effect of small EVs released from paced C2C12 myotubes on myogenesis and repair in vitro. He is interested in investigating the change in the profile and cargo of small EVs released in non-paced versus paced myotubes.​
​	​Keenen Gilbert Research area: Keenen's research focuses on characterising primary human myoblasts taken from biospsy samples to explain the key components and mechanisms involved in satellite cell biology to not only develop protocols to establish a more uniform baseline but to better evaluate the effects of potential experimental and therapeutic strategies.
MSc ​
	Kyle Hagemann Research area: Kyle is investigating the preferential uptake of EV's in myoblasts, specifically comparing the uptake of EV's derived from myoblasts versus EV's derived from fibroblasts.
​​	​Nonhle Dlamini Research area: Nonhle is studying the uptake of miRNA-cargo-loaded small EVs by skeletal muscle myoblasts, the delivery of miRNA, and its effect on myoblasts' proliferation, differentiation, and migration.

​National and International Research Collaborators:

​INTERNATIONAL:

• 2022-2024: University of Nebraska, Lincoln: Ass Prof I Vechetti
• 2021-2024:  University of Palermo, Italy Ass Prof F Macaluso, Dr F Scalia
• 2025: McMaster University, Canada: Ms Mai Wageh

NATIONAL:

• Long term ongoing: University of KwaZulu-Natal: Prof Carola Niesler
• Long term ongoing: Afrobodies: Dr Peter Durcan

Recent and noteworthy publications:

• Gudagudi, KB, d'Entrèves, NP, Ollewagen, T, Myburgh, KH. Total mRNA and primary human myoblasts' in vitro cell cycle progression distinguishes between clones. Biochimie 2022 196, pp. 161-170.
• Steyn P, Dzobo K, Smith RI, Myburgh KH. Interleukin-6 induces myogenic differentiation via JAK2-STAT3 signaling in primary human myoblasts from healthy donors. Int.J.Mol.Sci. 2019, 20, 5273, 1-30.
• Lovett JAC, Durcan PJ, Myburgh KH.  Investigation of Circulating Extracellular Vesicle MicroRNA Following Two Consecutive Bouts of Muscle-Damaging Exercise. Front Physiol. 2018 Aug 20;9:1149. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2018.01149
• Isaacs, AW, Myburgh, KH, Macaluso, F. Low-volume squat jump training improves functional performance independent of myofibre changes in inactive young male individuals. Healthcare (Switzerland) 2022 10(7),1217. P1-13.
• Sibisi, NC, Snyman, C, Myburgh, KH, Niesler, CU. Evaluating the role of nitric oxide in myogenesis in vitro. Biochimie 2022 196, pp. 216-224
• Scalia F, Barone R, Rappa F, Marino Gammazza A, Lo Celso F, Lo Bosco G, Barone G, Antona V, Vadalà M, Vitale AM, Donato Mangano G, Amato D, Sentiero G, Macaluso F, Myburgh KH, Conway de Macario E, Macario AJ, Giuffrè M and Cappello F. Muscle histopathological abnormalities in a patient with a CCT5 mutation predicted to affect the apical domain of the chaperonin subunit. Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences 2022 9,887336. P2-14.
• Gudagudi K, Passerin d'Entreves N, Woudberg NJ, Steyn PJ, Myburgh KH. In vitro induction of quiescence in isolated primary human myoblasts. Cytotechnology 2020 72:189–202.
• Ollewagen, T, Tarr, GS, Myburgh, KH, Reuter, H, Smith, C. Therapeutic benefit in rheumatoid cachexia illustrated using a novel primary human triple cell coculture model. International Journal of Inflammation 2022,1524913. P1-14.
• Gudagudi KB and KH Myburgh. Methods to mimic in vivo muscle cell biology in primary human myoblasts using quiescence as a guidepost in regenerative medicine research. OMICS A Journal of Integrative Biology https://doi.org/10.1089/omi.2020.0211 2021.
• T Ollewagen; KH Myburgh; M van de Vyver; Carine Smith. Rheumatoid cachexia: the underappreciated role of myoblast, macrophage and fibroblast interplay in the skeletal muscle niche. Journal of Biomedical Sciences 2021; 28:15 (p 1-16) https://doi.org/10.1186/s12929-021-00714-w.

• Lovett, J., McColl, R., Durcan, P., Vechetti, I., Myburgh., KH.  Analysis of human plasma-derived small extracellular vesicle characteristics and microRNA cargo following exercise-induced skeletal muscle damage. Physiological Reports. 2024. 12:e70056, P1-15. DOI: 10.14814/phy2.70056.
  

• Engelbrecht L, M Rawlins, TA Kohn, RL Bowen, GJ Eksteen, KH Myburgh. Physiological and muscle histochemical differences between men and women 10 km runners matched for race performance or training volume. Journal of Applied Physiology. 2024 136:1133–1143. ​