Is Fiber-Type Composition Related to Daily Jaw Muscle Activity during Postnatal Development?

Aim: Muscles containing large numbers of slow-contracting fibers are generally more active than muscles largely composed of fast fibers. This relationship between muscle activity and phenotype suggests that (1) changes in fiber-type composition during postnatal development are accompanied by changes in daily activity and (2) individual variations in fiber-type composition are related to similar variations in daily muscle activity. Methods: The masseter and digastric muscles of 23 New Zealand White rabbits (young, juvenile and adult) were examined for their phenotype (myosin heavy chain content) and their daily activity (total daily number of activity bursts). Results: During development, the masseter showed a strong increase in the number of fast-type fibers compared to the number of slow-type fibers. During development, also the number of powerful bursts in the masseter increased. The digastric showed no significant changes in fiber types or burst numbers. Within each muscle, across individual animals, no significant correlations (R < 0.70) were found between any of the fiber types and daily burst numbers in any of the age groups. Conclusions: The results suggest that activity-related influences are of relatively minor importance during development and that other factors are dominant in determining fiber-type composition.