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Biomedical subjects

G A Brooks

Publications and source records attributed to G A Brooks.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Effect of swimming on prednisolone-induced osteoporosis in elderly rats.

We investigated the possible ameliorating and preventive effect of swimming on prednisolone-induced osteoporosis in elderly rats. A total of 48 female Sabra strain rats were randomly assigned to the following groups and treatments: (1) control (C), (2) swimming (S), (3) prednisolone-treated (CP), and (4) swimming + prednisolone (SP). An additional 8 rats were sacrificed and examined at the onset of the study. Groups C and S were sham injected; groups CP and SP were injected with prednisolone (Ultracorten), 80 mg/kg three times per week for 10 weeks. Groups S and SP swam 1 h daily, 5 days per week for 10 weeks. SP rats swam simultaneously with prednisolone administration. At the end of the swimming period, in vivo bone mineral content (BMC) measurements were performed on rat vertebrae L4-5 by single-photon absorptiometry. Later, the humerus and femur were removed for the following measurements: morphometric, bone density (BD) by Compton scattering technique, bone ion content by atomic absorption, and hydration fraction by proton magnetic resonance (PMR). We found that the humeral BD of S rats was greater by 14% for group S over C and 3% greater for group SP over CP (P less than 0.05). Vertebral BMC was higher by 15% in group S over C and 11% higher for group SP over CP (P less than 0.05). Femoral calcium (mg/g dry bone) ion content was higher by 5% in group S over C and 8% in group SP over CP group (P less than 0.05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aging

Increased energy intake minimizes weight loss in men at high altitude.

The hypothesis that high-altitude weight loss can be prevented by increasing energy intake to meet energy requirement was tested in seven men, 23.7 +/- 4.3 (SD) yr, taken to 4,300 m for 21 days. Energy intake required to maintain body weight at sea level was found to be 3,118 +/- 300 kcal/day, as confirmed by nitrogen balance. Basal metabolic rate (BMR), determined by indirect calorimetry, increased 27% on day 2 at altitude and then decreased and reached a plateau at 17% above the sea level BMR by day 10. Energy expended during strenuous activities was 37% lower at altitude than at sea level. Fecal excretion of energy, nitrogen, total fiber, and total volatile fatty acids was not significantly affected by altitude. Energy intake at altitude was adjusted after 1 wk, on the basis of the increased BMR, to 3,452 +/- 452 kcal/day. Mean nitrogen balance at altitude was negative (-0.25 +/- 0.71 g/day) before energy intake was adjusted but rose significantly thereafter (0.20 +/- 0.71 and 0.44 +/- 0.66 g/day during weeks 2 and 3). Mean body weight decreased 2.1 +/- 1.0 kg over the 3 wk of the study, but the rate of weight loss was significantly diminished after the increase in energy intake (201 +/- 75 vs. 72 +/- 48 g/day). Individual regression lines drawn through 7-day segments of body weight showed that in four of seven subjects the slopes of body weight were not significantly different from zero after the 2nd wk. Thus weight loss ceased in four of seven men in whom increased BMR at altitude was compensated with increased energy intake.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult

Muscle accounts for glucose disposal but not blood lactate appearance during exercise after acclimatization to 4,300 m.

We hypothesized that the increased blood glucose disappearance (Rd) observed during exercise and after acclimatization to high altitude (4,300 m) could be attributed to net glucose uptake (G) by the legs and that the increased arterial lactate concentration and rate of appearance (Ra) on arrival at altitude and subsequent decrease with acclimatization were caused by changes in net muscle lactate release (L). To evaluate these hypotheses, seven healthy males [23 +/- 2 (SE) yr, 72.2 +/- 1.6 kg], on a controlled diet were studied in the postabsorptive condition at sea level, on acute exposure to 4,300 m, and after 3 wk of acclimatization to 4,300 m. Subjects received a primed-continuous infusion of [6,6-D2]glucose (Brooks et al., J. Appl. Physiol. 70: 919-927, 1991) and [3-13C]lactate (Brooks et al., J. Appl. Physiol. 71:333-341, 1991) and rested for a minimum of 90 min, followed immediately by 45 min of exercise at 101 +/- 3 W, which elicited 51.1 +/- 1% of the sea level peak O2 uptake (65 +/- 2% of both acute altitude and acclimatization peak O2 uptake). Glucose and lactate arteriovenous differences across the legs and arms and leg blood flow were measured. Leg G increased during exercise compared with rest, at altitude compared with sea level, and after acclimatization. Leg G accounted for 27-36% of Rd at rest and essentially all glucose Rd during exercise. A shunting of the blood glucose flux to active muscle during exercise at altitude is indicated. With acute altitude exposure, at 5 min of exercise L was elevated compared with sea level or after acclimatization, but from 15 to 45 min of exercise the pattern and magnitude of L from the legs varied and followed neither the pattern nor the magnitude of responses in arterial lactate concentration or Ra. Leg L accounted for 6-65% of lactate Ra at rest and 17-63% during exercise, but the percent Ra from L was not affected by altitude. Tracer-measured lactate extraction by legs accounted for 10-25% of lactate Rd at rest and 31-83% during exercise. Arms released lactate under all conditions except during exercise with acute exposure to high altitude, when the arms consumed lactate. Both active and inactive muscle beds demonstrated simultaneous lactate extraction and release. We conclude that active skeletal muscle is the predominant site of glucose disposal during exercise and at high altitude but not the sole source of blood lactate during exercise at sea level or high altitude.

Acclimatization

Altitude acclimatization and energy metabolic adaptations in skeletal muscle during exercise.

To determine whether the working muscle is able to sustain ATP homeostasis during a hypoxic insult and the mechanisms associated with energy metabolic adaptations during the acclimatization process, seven male subjects [23 +/- 2 (SE) yr, 72.2 +/- 1.6 kg] were given a prolonged exercise challenge (45 min) at sea level (SL), within 4 h after ascent to an altitude of 4,300 m (acute hypoxia, AH), and after 3 wk of sustained residence at 4,300 m (chronic hypoxia, CH). The prolonged cycle test conducted at the same absolute intensity and representing 51 +/- 1% of SL maximal aerobic power (VO2 max) and between 64 +/- 2 (AH) and 66 +/- 1% (CH) at altitude was performed without a reduction in ATP concentration in the working vastus lateralis regardless of condition. Compared with rest, exercise performed during AH resulted in a greater increase (P < 0.05) in muscle lactate concentration (5.11 +/- 0.68 to 22.3 +/- 6.1 mmol/kg dry wt) than exercise performed either at SL (5.88 +/- 0.85 to 11.5 +/- 3.1) or CH (5.99 +/- 0.88 to 12.4 +/- 2.1). These differences in lactate concentration have been shown to reflect differences in arterial lactate concentration and glycolysis (Brooks et al. J. Appl. Physiol. 71: 333-341, 1991). The reduction in glycolysis at least between AH and CH appears to be accompanied by a tighter metabolic control. During CH, free ADP was lower and the ATP-to-free ADP ratio was increased (P < 0.05) compared with AH.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acclimatization

Oxygen transport during exercise at altitude and the lactate paradox: lessons from Operation Everest II and Pikes Peak.

It seems unlikely that oxygen-limited metabolism explains the increased lactate concentrations in blood or muscle during exercise at high altitude compared with sea level values because: 1. Even marked hypoxia equivalent to that at the summit of Mt. Everest may not be sufficiently severe to impair function or to impair muscle oxidative metabolism markedly during exercise; 2. At this very high altitude, muscle hypoxemia is probably not the limiting factor for exercise performance; other systems, i.e., the cerebral cortex [24, 33], probably fail before hypoxemia impairs muscle metabolism; 3. The traditional view of oxygen-limited aerobic metabolism during exercise at high altitude does not explain a long-standing dilemma in altitude physiology, the lactate paradox (in which blood lactate accumulation during exercise is increased on arrival at high altitude but falls with acclimatization), because the lactate fall is independent of muscle oxygenation; 4. Net lactate release by the leg during exercise is independent of oxygenation; 5. Kinetic studies show that lactate appearance and disappearance are closely linked and both increase with acute altitude exposure and decrease with acclimatization; 6. Lactate appearance rate is strongly correlated with, and may be influenced by, the extent of beta-adrenergic stimulation; 7. The beta-adrenergic stimulation may be, in part, determined by the degree of arterial oxygenation.

Acclimatization

The effects of ingesting polylactate or glucose polymer drinks during prolonged exercise.

Five trained, fasted male cyclists rode a cycle ergometer three times at 50% of VO2max for 180 min. Using a balanced order, double-blind procedure, subjects were given either a solution containing polylactate (PL: 80% polylactate, 20% sodium lactate, in 7% solution with water), glucose polymer (GP: multidextrin in 7% solution with water), or control (C: water sweetened with aspartame) 5 min before exercise and at 20-min intervals during exercise. Venous blood samples were taken at rest and at 20-min intervals during exercise. In general, PL and GP rendered similar results except that pH and bicarbonate (HCO3-) were higher in PL. There were no differences between treatments in perceived exertion, sodium, potassium, chloride, lactate, heart rate, oxygen consumption, rectal temperature, or selected skin temperatures. These data show that polylactate may help maintain blood glucose and enhance blood buffering capacity during prolonged exercise and could be a useful component in an athletic fluid replacement beverage.

Adult

Arterial catecholamine responses during exercise with acute and chronic high-altitude exposure.

Exercise at high altitude is a stress that activates the sympathoadrenal systems, which could affect responses to acute altitude exposure and promote adaptations during chronic altitude exposure. However, catecholamine levels are not clearly described over time at high altitude. In seven male volunteers (23 yr, 72 kg), resting arterial norepinephrine concentrations (ng/ml) on arrival at Pikes Peak (0.338 +/- 0.041) decreased compared with sea-level values (0.525 +/- 0.034) but increased to above sea-level values after 21 days at 4,300 m (0.798 +/- 0.052). Furthermore, during 45 min of constant submaximal exercise, values were similar at sea level (1.670 +/- 0.221) and on acute exposure to 4,300 m (2.123 +/- 0.086) but increased after 21 days of chronic exposure (2.693 +/- 0.216). By contrast, resting arterial epinephrine values (ng/ml) during acute and chronic exposure (0.708 +/- 0.033 vs. 0.448 +/- 0.026) both exceeded those of sea level (0.356 +/- 0.020). During exercise values on arrival were greater than at sea level (0.921 +/- 0.024 vs. 0.397 +/- 0.035) but fell to 0.612 +/- 0.025 ng/ml after 21 days. Exercise norepinephrine levels were related to systemic vascular resistance measurements (r = 0.93), whereas epinephrine levels were related to circulating lactate (r = 0.95). We conclude that during exercise at altitude there is a dissociation between norepinephrine, an indicator of sympathetic neural activity, and epinephrine, an indicator of adrenal medullary response. These actions may account for different metabolic and physiological responses to acute vs. chronic altitude exposure.

Adult

Increased dependence on blood glucose after acclimatization to 4,300 m.

To evaluate the hypothesis that altitude exposure and acclimatization result in increased dependency on blood glucose as a fuel, seven healthy males (23 +/- 2 yr, 72.2 +/- 1.6 kg, mean +/- SE) on a controlled diet were studied in the postabsorptive condition at sea level (SL), on acute altitude exposure to 4,300 m (AA), and after 3 wk of chronic altitude exposure to 4,300 m (CA). Subjects received a primed continuous infusion of [6,6-2D]glucose and rested for a minimum of 90 min, followed immediately by 45 min of exercise at 101 +/- 3 W, which elicited 51.1 +/- 1% of the SL maximal O2 consumption (VO2 max; 65 +/- 2% of altitude VO2 max). At SL, resting arterial glucose concentration was 82.4 +/- 3.2 mg/dl and rose significantly to 91.2 +/- 3.2 mg/dl during exercise. Resting glucose appearance rate (Ra) was 1.79 +/- 0.02 mg.kg-1.min-1; this increased significantly during exercise at SL to 3.71 +/- 0.08 mg.kg-1.min-1. On AA, resting arterial glucose concentration (85.8 +/- 4.1 mg/dl) was not different from sea level, but Ra (2.11 +/- 0.14 mg.kg-1.min-1) rose significantly. During exercise on AA, glucose concentration rose to levels seen at SL (91.4 +/- 3.0 mg/dl), but Ra increased more than at SL (to 4.85 +/- 0.15 mg.kg-1.min-1; P less than 0.05). Resting arterial glucose was significantly depressed with CA (70.8 +/- 3.8 mg/dl), but resting Ra increased to 3.59 +/- 0.08 mg.kg-1.min-1, significantly exceeding SL and AA values.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acclimatization

Oxygen transport during steady-state submaximal exercise in chronic hypoxia.

Arterial O2 delivery during short-term submaximal exercise falls on arrival at high altitude but thereafter remains constant. As arterial O2 content increases with acclimatization, blood flow falls. We evaluated several factors that could influence O2 delivery during more prolonged submaximal exercise after acclimatization at 4,300 m. Seven men (23 +/- 2 yr) performed 45 min of steady-state submaximal exercise at sea level (barometric pressure 751 Torr), on acute ascent to 4,300 m (barometric pressure 463 Torr), and after 21 days of residence at altitude. The O2 uptake (VO2) was constant during exercise, 51 +/- 1% of maximal VO2 at sea level, and 65 +/- 2% VO2 at 4,300 m. After acclimatization, exercise cardiac output decreased 25 +/- 3% compared with arrival and leg blood flow decreased 18 +/- 3% (P less than 0.05), with no change in the percentage of cardiac output to the leg. Hemoglobin concentration and arterial O2 saturation increased, but total body and leg O2 delivery remained unchanged. After acclimatization, a reduction in plasma volume was offset by an increase in erythrocyte volume, and total blood volume did not change. Mean systemic arterial pressure, systemic vascular resistance, and leg vascular resistance were all greater after acclimatization (P less than 0.05). Mean plasma norepinephrine levels also increased during exercise in a parallel fashion with increased vascular resistance. Thus we conclude that both total body and leg O2 delivery decrease after arrival at 4,300 m and remain unchanged with acclimatization as a result of a parallel fall in both cardiac output and leg blood flow and an increase in arterial O2 content.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acclimatization

Decreased reliance on lactate during exercise after acclimatization to 4,300 m.

We hypothesized that the increased exercise arterial lactate concentration on arrival at high altitude and the subsequent decrease with acclimatization were caused by changes in blood lactate flux. Seven healthy men [age 23 +/- 2 (SE) yr, wt 72.2 +/- 1.6 kg] on a controlled diet were studied in the postabsorptive condition at sea level, on acute exposure to 4,300 m, and after 3 wk of acclimatization to 4,300 m. Subjects received a primed-continuous infusion of [6,6-2D]glucose (Brooks et al. J. Appl. Physiol. 70:919-927, 1991) and [3-13C]lactate and rested for a minimum of 90 min followed immediately by 45 min of exercise at 101 +/- 3 W, which elicited 51.1 +/- 1% of the sea level peak O2 consumption (VO2peak; 65 +/- 2% of both acute altitude and acclimatization). During rest at sea level, lactate appearance rate (Ra) was 0.52 +/- 0.03 mg.kg-1.min-1; this increased sixfold during exercise to 3.24 +/- 0.19 mg.kg-1.min-1. On acute exposure, resting lactate Ra rose from sea level values to 2.2 +/- 0.2 mg.kg-1.min-1. During exercise on acute exposure, lactate Ra rose to 18.6 +/- 2.9 mg.kg-1.min-1. Resting lactate Ra after acclimatization (1.77 +/- 0.25 mg.kg-1.min-1) was intermediate between sea level and acute exposure values. During exercise after acclimatization, lactate Ra (9.2 +/- 0.7 mg.kg-1.min-1) rose from resting values but was intermediate between sea level and acute exposure values. The increased exercise arterial lactate concentration response on arrival at high altitude and subsequent decrease with acclimatization are due to changes in blood lactate appearance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adaptation, Physiological

Current concepts in lactate exchange.

There are several goals to this introductory paper in the symposium proceedings, "Current Concepts in Lactate Exchange." First, an attempt is made to set the historical context for the symposium and foreshadow how the paper of each participant contributes to our contemporary understanding of the field. As implied in the symposium title, an emphasis will be placed on the exchange of lactate for other metabolites and ions so that utilization can be temporally and spatially disassociated from formation. Thus, rather than a dead-end metabolite, which only accumulates during exercise, there appears to be great usefulness in the formation, exchange between cells, blood and organs, and utilization of lactic acid (lactate). Specific papers will deal with aspects of lactate release and uptake by skeletal muscle, hepatic lactate balance, the flux of dietary carbohydrate through various lactate pools in the synthesis of liver glycogen, lactate metabolism in the heart, properties of the sarcolemmal lactate transporter, and evolution of a model to predict lactate production from blood measurements. Second, in this review an attempt will be made to present and support a unifying hypothesis (the "lactate shuttle") in which the various aspects of lactate exchange may be integrated and understood. Emphasis will be placed on showing several corollaries between muscle and whole-body lactate metabolism. These are: temporal dependence on lactate uptake and release, the effects of beta-adrenergic stimulation on lactate formation and release, the effect of prior endurance training on lactate metabolism, the effect of lactate on glucose uptake and utilization, and the role of low oxygen tension (hypoxia) in loosening the control of glycolysis. The formation, exchange, and utilization of lactate represents a central means by which the coordination of intermediary metabolism in diverse tissues and different cells within tissues can be accomplished.

Blood Glucose

Lactate transport is mediated by a membrane-bound carrier in rat skeletal muscle sarcolemmal vesicles.

To study the kinetics of lactate transport in an isolated, nonmetabolizing system, skeletal muscle sarcolemmal membrane vesicles were purified from 22 female Sprague-Dawley rats. L(+)-[U-14C] Lactate at 10 concentrations demonstrated saturation kinetics with a Vmax of 139.4 nmol/mg/min, and an apparent Km of 40.1 mM. Threefold higher initial rates of L(+)-lactate uptake were seen at 37 degrees C than at 25 degrees C, indicating temperature sensitivity. Transport was stereospecific for the L(+) isomer: isotopic D(-) uptake rates remained linear at concentrations from 1 to 200 mM, and 1 mM D(-) remained 6-fold lower in net uptake after 60 min than the L(+) isomer. Furthermore, unlabeled 10 mM D(-)-lactate in the external medium could only inhibit 1 mM isotopic (L(+) uptake by 12%, whereas unlabeled 10 mM L(+)-lactate and pyruvate inhibited 82 and 71%, respectively. Additionally, 10 mM beta-hydroxybutyrate and acetoacetate could moderately inhibit (27 and 32%, respectively) 1 mM L(+)-lactate transport, but the unsubstituted aliphatic monocarboxylates (formate, acetate, propionate), tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates (malate, succinate, oxaloacetate, alpha-ketoglutyrate, citrate), amino acids (alanine, aspartate, glutamate), and palmitate or adenosine in 10-fold excess could not effectively inhibit 1 mM L(+)lactate uptake under cis-transport conditions. 4,4'-Diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid could inhibit L(+)-lactate transport by only 13%, so that lactate transport does not appear to be affected directly by Cl- or HCO3- fluxes. It was demonstrated that KCl could not evoke a membrane potential-induced overshoot of lactate uptake in the presence or absence of valinomycin. Moreover, gluconate could substitute for Cl-, indicating that Cl- flux does not contribute to a membrane potential-dependent component of the transport mechanism, suggesting an electroneutral translocation process. Protein-modifying reagents significantly inhibited 1 mM L(+)-lactate transport during pH-stimulated conditions (p-chloromercuriphenyl-sulfonic acid, 83%; N-ethylmaleimide, 86%; HgCl2, 56%; mersalyl, 63% inhibition). We conclude that the skeletal muscle lactate transporter is a membrane-bound protein, specifically associated with the sarcolemma, that demonstrates saturation kinetics, competition, stereospecificity, and sensitivity to temperature as well as various ionic cis-inhibitors. The lactate transporter is a potentially important regulator of lactate flux across skeletal muscle, and may help to regulate intracellular pH and intermediary metabolism during lactic acidosis.

Animals

Lactate and pyruvate transport is dominated by a pH gradient-sensitive carrier in rat skeletal muscle sarcolemmal vesicles.

The mechanisms of lactate and pyruvate transport across the plasma membrane of rat skeletal muscle under various pH and ionic conditions were studied in skeletal muscle sarcolemmal (SL) membrane vesicles purified from 22 female Sprague-Dawley rats. Transport by SL vesicles was measured as uptake of L(+)-[U-14C] lactate and [U-14C] pyruvate. Lactate (La-) transport is pH-sensitive; stimulations to fivefold overshoot above equilibrium values were observed both directly by a proton gradient directed inward, and indirectly by a monensin- or nigericin-stimulated exchange of Na+ or K+ for H+ across the SL. Isotopic pyruvate could utilize the transporter, and demonstrated pH gradient-stimulated overshoot and cis-inhibition characteristics similar to those of lactate. Overshoot kinetics were also demonstrated by pH gradient formed by manipulation of external media at pH 5.9, 6.6, and 7.4 and intravesicular media at 6.6, 7.4, and 8.0, respectively. Carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone, an H+ ionophore, was used as a "pH clamp" to return all stimulated uptake courses back to equilibrium values. Lactate uptake was depressed when internal pH was lower than external pH. These data strongly suggest that La- and H+ are either cotransported by the carrier, or transported as the undissociated HLa, and can account for the majority of the lactate uptake at pH 7.4. The mechanism does not require cotransport of either K+ or Na+. However, an inwardly directed Na+ gradient without ionophore in the absence of a pH gradient doubled La- transport; treatment with amiloride, an inhibitor of the Na+/H+ exchanger, abolished this stimulation, suggesting that this transporter may be an important coregulator of intracellular pH, and could disrupt 1:1 H+ and La- efflux stoichiometry in vivo. We conclude that the majority of La- crosses the skeletal muscle SL by a specific carrier-mediated process that is saturable at high La- concentrations, but flux is passively augmented at low intracellular pH by undissociated lactic acid. In addition, a Na+/H+ exchange mechanism was confirmed in skeletal muscle SL, does affect both lactate and proton flux, and is potentially an important coregulator of intracellular pH and thus, cellular metabolism.

Animals

Tracer mixing: sites of tracer infusion and sampling.

Controversy exists in the literature concerning the correct infusion and sampling sites in studies measuring substrate turnover rates. To investigate this problem, we examined the results obtained with various infusion and sampling sites in 7 anesthetized dogs. [1-14C]lactate was infused by a primed continuous infusion method in three different sites (the left ventricle, ascending aorta, and the aortic arch) in a sequential fashion; samples were obtained simultaneously from five sites (femoral artery, carotid artery, pulmonary artery, superior vena cava and inferior vena cava) for each of the three different infusion sites. [U-13C]lactate was also infused in a femoral vein and simultaneous samples were obtained in the carotid artery and femoral artery for analysis of the stable isotope. [14C]lactate analysis demonstrated that infusion of the tracer into the left ventricular chamber resulted in a uniform distribution in the systemic circulation. Infusion into the ascending aorta near the aortic valve resulted in uniform distribution of tracer in four out of five experiments. Tracer infusion into the aortic arch resulted in nonuniform systemic distribution of tracer. The [U-13C]lactate results showed that infusion into the femoral vein gives uniform systemic distribution, similar to that observed with left ventricular infusion. The pulmonary artery lactate specific activities varied from those in the superior vena cava. Thus, this study shows that the tracer must be infused in the left ventricle or upstream from this chamber to obtain optimal systemic distribution. Vena caval sampling, especially superior vena caval sampling, will not give a consistent mixed venous concentration of the lactate tracer. Therefore, aortic tracer infusion with vena caval sampling may lead to errors in determining substrate turnover values.

Animals

Obtaining a representative blood sample in lactate tracer studies.

Reasons why venous tracer infusion with arterial sampling [(v-a) mode] has advantages compared to arterial infusion and venous sampling [(a-v) mode] for studies of blood lactate kinetics are presented. Arterial tracer infusion can result in biased tracer input due to streaming and unequal blood flow distribution. The procedure is impractical for human studies. Venous sampling from the jugular, or any other peripheral or great vein, provides a sample which may, or may not represent mixed venous systemic blood, which exists only in the pulmonary artery. Venous sampling will not represent cardiac lactate metabolism because the coronary arteries drain into the coronary sinus. Venous sampling, as well as pulmonary artery sampling, will also ignore lactate metabolism in the lungs which drain into the left atrium from bronchial and pulmonary circulations. Turnover rates calculated from either venous or arterial specific activities underestimate true tissue turnover. Correction for either measurement depends on good estimates of blood flows to lactate exchanging and non-exchanging tissue. Equilibration between lactate and pyruvate pools does not invalidate the use of tracers to measure lactate turnover. The (v-a) mode with venous infusion and arterial sampling has advantages for lactate tracer studies.

Arteries

Iron deficiency: improved exercise performance within 15 hours of iron treatment in rats.

We tested the hypothesis that a very rapid improvement in exercise performance of iron-deficient rats after treatment with iron might reveal a rate-limiting role of ionic iron as an enzyme cofactor in energy metabolism. Rats were given iron-deficient or control diets after weaning at 21 d of age and intraperitoneal iron dextran (50 mg/kg) at 45 d of age. Time to fatigue during an easy walking exercise (endurance) was measured 15 and 18 h after iron dextran or saline injection. Endurance increased more than threefold compared to the saline-treated, iron-deficient animals without a significant change in hemoglobin concentration. This prompt improvement suggests that lack of cofactor iron might play a metabolically important role in impairing exercise performance in the severely iron-deficient rat.

Alcohol Oxidoreductases

Glucose kinetics in gluconeogenesis-inhibited rats during rest and exercise.

To evaluate the role played by gluconeogenesis in blood glucose homeostasis, female Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with mercaptopicolinic acid (MPA), a gluconeogenic inhibitor. Glucose kinetics were assessed by primed, continuous infusion of [U-14C]- and [6(-3)H]glucose via an indwelling jugular catheter at rest and during submaximal exercise at 13.4 m/min on level grade. Blood samples were taken from carotid catheters and analyzed for glucose and lactate concentrations and specific activities. Tissue glycogen samples were obtained from rats after exercise as well as from unexercised animals. When compared with the sham-injected animals, MPA-treated animals had 22% lower (5.92 +/- 0.36 vs. 7.62 +/- 0.21 mM) and 44% higher (1.90 +/- 0.11 vs. 1.32 +/- 0.09 mM) resting arterial glucose and lactate concentrations, respectively. Resting glucose appearance (Ra) rates were 20% lower in the MPA-treated animals (57.2 +/- 7.5 mumol.kg-1.min-1) than in the sham-injected animals (71.1 +/- 12.1 mumol.kg-1.min-1). During exercise, Ra increased to 174.7 +/- 32.8 mumol.kg-1.min-1 in sham-injected animals. In the MPA-treated animals, there was a 35% increase during the first 15 min of exercise, followed by a decrease to the resting values. MPA-treated animals had no measurable glucose recycling at rest or during exercise. Exercise decreased blood glucose concentration (35%) and increased blood lactate concentration (160%) in the MPA-treated animals. Exercising sham-injected animals had increased blood glucose (9.8%) but no change in blood lactate concentration. Moderate depletions in liver and skeletal muscle glycogen contents were observed after exercise.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals