Dissociation of Transcription, Translation, and Assembly of Collagen-tailed Acetylcholinesterase in Skeletal Muscle

The synaptic form of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in skeletal muscle ColQ-AChE derives from two separate genes encoding the catalytic and the non-catalytic collagenic tail (ColQ) subunits, respectively. ColQ-AChE expression is regulated by muscle activity; however, how this regulation takes place in skeletal muscle remains poorly understood. In this study, we overexpressed or knocked down ColQ expression in skeletal muscle and found that the level of this non-catalytic component by itself was sufficient to change the levels of total AChE activity by promoting assembly of higher order oligomeric forms including the collagen-tailed forms. These results initially suggested that ColQ could be limiting in the assembly of synaptic ColQ-AChE during development and differentiation. We then determined the levels of ColQ protein and ColQ mRNA during primary quail muscle cell development and differentiation in culture (QMCs) and as a function of muscle activity. Surprisingly, we found dissociation between transcription and translation of the non-catalytic subunit from its assembly into ColQ-AChE. Furthermore, we found that the vast majority of the steady state ColQ molecules in mature quail muscle cultures are not assembled into ColQ-AChE, suggesting that they are either rapidly degraded or have alternative function(s).