Effects of nandrolone decanoate on the viability of muscle satellite cells during the differentiation process

Abstract

Studies indicate that the anabolic nandrolone decanoate (Deca-Durabolin(r)) can modulate cell cycle regulation, but little is known about its effects on muscle cells. Anabolic steroids are used, especially by athletes, to improve muscle mass and performance in the practice of exercises. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the anabolic Deca-Durabolin(r) on the proliferation of skeletal muscle precursor cells C2C12. Cells were grown in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM), being supplemented with 10% Fetal Bovine Serum (FBS) and subjected to differentiation by the addition of 2% horse serum. They were incubated with anabolic at concentrations of 5, 10, 25 and 50 µM. The groups that received no anabolic or vehicle served as controls. The viability (proliferation) was evaluated by the MTT method (3-[4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide; Thiazolyl blue) after one, three and five days of incubation. Three independent experiments were performed in each of the mentioned conditions, and the results were submitted to statistical analysis with significance level of p≤0.05 (ANOVA/Dunnett). Results showed no difference in viability between muscle cells treated with anabolic and the control cultures in all parameters. In conclusion, nandrolone, at the used concentrations, was not able to alter the viability of muscle C2C12 satellite cells.