Abstract
Fibro-adipogenic progenitor cells (FAPs) support muscle tissue homeostasis, regulate muscle growth, injury repair, and fibrosis, and activate muscle progenitor cell differentiation to promote regeneration. We aimed to investigate the effects of co-culturing FAPs with muscle satellite cells (MuSCs) on myogenic differentiation. Proteomic profiling of co-culture supernatants identified significant DCX, IMP2A, NUDT16L1, SLC38A2, and IL-6 upregulation. Comparative transcriptomics of mono-cultured versus co-cultured MuSCs revealed differential expression of oxidative stress-related genes (HMOX1, ALOX5, GSTM3, TRPM2, PADI1, and CTSL). Pathway enrichment analyses highlighted cell cycle regulation, TNF signaling, and ferroptosis. Gene ontology analysis of MuSCs indicated significant gene enrichment in myosin-related components. Combined transcriptomic and proteomic analyses demonstrated HO-1 downregulation at the transcriptional and translational levels, with altered pathways being predominantly related to myosin filament, muscle system process, and muscle contraction cellular components. HO-1 knockdown reduced intracellular iron accumulation in MuSCs, suppressing iron-dependent autophagy. This alleviated oxidative stress and promoted myogenic differentiation. Exogenous IL-6 (0.1 ng/mL) downregulated HO-1 expression, initiating an identical regulatory cascade, while HO-1 overexpression reversed the IL-6-mediated reduction in the expression of the autophagy markers LC3 and ATG5, suppressing myogenic enhancement. This establishes the co-culture-induced IL-6/HO-1 axis as a core regulator of iron-dependent oxidative stress and autophagy during myogenic differentiation.