Muscle specific RING finger protein (MuRF1) is a sarcomere-associated protein that is upregulated by conditions that provoke atrophy. Pharmacological or genetic inhibition of the IKKbeta/NF-kappaB/MuRF1 pathway reverses muscle atrophy, which presents MuRF as a target for clinical intervention. MuRF1 is a key regulator of the PKC-dependent hypertrophic response and can blunt cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, which may have important implications in the pathophysiology of clinical cardiac hypertrophy. MuRF1 directly associates with Titin kinase and influences microtubule-dependent signaling pathways in striated muscle and iris. MuRF1 upregulation is an indicator for skeletal muscle atrophy mechanisms that utilize ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis. MuRF1 transcript levels are high in situations where there is an overabundance of reactive oxygen species, such as cancer, AIDS and sepsis.
