Jan Medenbach [creativecommons license] via Wikimedia CommonsMyotonic dystrophy type 1 is the second most common form of muscular dystrophy and the form most likely to occur in adults. The disorder is characterized by weakness and atrophy of type 1 (or slow) muscle fibers through mechanisms that, until recently, were not understood. Now, Zhihua Gao and Thomas A. Cooper (Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX) have shown that aberrant alternative splicing is to blame for the muscle wasting.
Fluent in Science