High-Density Surface Electromyography Detects Fiber-Type-Related Profiles and Disease-Relevant Fatigue…

Abstract

Fiber-type composition contributes to contractile behavior and fatigue resistance. Characterizing these physiological differences could help study and monitor disease-related changes. Direct fiber-type measurement requires biopsy, whereas animal findings may not fully translate to humans. High-density surface electromyography (HD-sEMG) may offer repeatable, noninvasive assessment. We recorded HD-sEMG from tibialis anterior (TA) and soleus, muscles with contrasting fast- and slow-twitch-like physiology, during sustained contractions at 30% and 50% maximum voluntary contraction in participants with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS; n = 7) and healthy controls (n = 10). Given fast-fatigable motor unit vulnerability in ALS models, we compared TA-soleus profiles and fatigue-related changes. Amplitude, spectral, motor unit firing, and motor unit action potential (MUAP) features were quantified in the first 10 s of stable contraction, with firing and MUAP features derived from decomposition. Exploratory fatigue analyses assessed early-to-late changes and trajectories. Early-window root mean square (RMS), spectral power, firing rate, and MUAP amplitude were higher in TA than soleus in both groups. Group x Muscle interactions were nonsignificant. Despite higher early values, TA showed larger fatigue-related declines in high-frequency power, RMS, and firing rate than soleus, particularly in ALS-affected TA. These findings suggest HD-sEMG detects muscle-type-related electrophysiological differences, with ALS-related changes more evident during fatigue.

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Cite

BibTeX RIS

BibTeX

@misc{bedoy2026highdensity,
  title = {{High-Density Surface Electromyography Detects Fiber-Type-Related Profiles and Disease-Relevant Fatigue Trajectories in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis}},
  author = {E. H. Bedoy and M. Brown and B. Sullivan and M. A. Christofidis and T. Al-Lahham and D. Weber and C. L. Kolarcik},
  howpublished = {medRxiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.64898/2026.10.20.26366045},
  url = {https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.20.26366045v1},
  note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}

RIS

TY  - UNPB
TI  - High-Density Surface Electromyography Detects Fiber-Type-Related Profiles and Disease-Relevant Fatigue Trajectories in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
AU  - E. H. Bedoy
AU  - M. Brown
AU  - B. Sullivan
AU  - M. A. Christofidis
AU  - T. Al-Lahham
AU  - D. Weber
AU  - C. L. Kolarcik
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/20
PB  - medRxiv
DO  - 10.64898/2026.10.20.26366045
UR  - https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.20.26366045v1
AB  - Fiber-type composition contributes to contractile behavior and fatigue resistance. Characterizing these physiological differences could help study and monitor disease-related changes. Direct fiber-type measurement requires biopsy, whereas animal findings may not fully translate to humans. High-density surface electromyography (HD-sEMG) may offer repeatable, noninvasive assessment. We recorded HD-sEMG from tibialis anterior (TA) and soleus, muscles with contrasting fast- and slow-twitch-like physiology, during sustained contractions at 30% and 50% maximum voluntary contraction in participants with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS; n = 7) and healthy controls (n = 10). Given fast-fatigable motor unit vulnerability in ALS models, we compared TA-soleus profiles and fatigue-related changes. Amplitude, spectral, motor unit firing, and motor unit action potential (MUAP) features were quantified in the first 10 s of stable contraction, with firing and MUAP features derived from decomposition. Exploratory fatigue analyses assessed early-to-late changes and trajectories. Early-window root mean square (RMS), spectral power, firing rate, and MUAP amplitude were higher in TA than soleus in both groups. Group x Muscle interactions were nonsignificant. Despite higher early values, TA showed larger fatigue-related declines in high-frequency power, RMS, and firing rate than soleus, particularly in ALS-affected TA. These findings suggest HD-sEMG detects muscle-type-related electrophysiological differences, with ALS-related changes more evident during fatigue.
ER  -