NF-κB and p38 MAPK: Major regulators in skeletal muscle development

Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) are intimately related to skeletal muscle abnormalities. Since that, an interest has been found to investigate their functions in skeletal muscle development. Skeletal muscle development is a very complicated process involving cell differentiation, apoptosis, protein synthesis and degradation. Previous studies indicated that NF-κB acted as dule roles in skeletal muscle differentiation, by contrast, p38 MAPK is a clear regulator in promoting this process. Recently, an intriguing field of investigating the cross talk between NF-κB and p38 MAPK is emerging, and to further complete the picture between NF-κB and p38 MAPK will be filled with prospect. So, the most recent reports on this aspect are included in this paper.