The recent FDA approval of Givinostat (Duvyzat®), a histone deacetylase inhibitor (HDACi), for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy highlights the importance and impact of epigenetic regulation in myogenesis and skeletal muscle disease. However, epigenetic analysis in primary myogenic populations, including muscle stem cells (MuSCs) and fibro-adipogenic progenitors (FAPs), remains challenging. These cells are scarce and difficult to expand in vitro due to loss of quiescence (MuSCs) or reduced potency (FAPs), limiting the number of cells available for analysis.

In this Topical Collection, we bring together experts in skeletal muscle biology and epigenetics to present novel techniques for isolating rare cell populations while preserving their in situ biological properties. The collection will cover wet-lab protocols, ex vivo approaches, and emerging spatial transcriptomics technologies, along with bioinformatic pipelines for analyzing epigenetic and spatial transcriptomic data.