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Metabolic responses of muscle to exercise

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 February 2018

B Essén–Gustavsson
B Essén–Gustavsson*
Affiliation:
Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, Unit for Comparative Physiology and Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Box 7018, 75007 Uppsala, Sweden
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Abstract

Muscle is a tissue with a great plasticity due to the fact that it is composed of fibres having different contractile and metabolic properties. In horses, muscle metabolic responses to exercise are studied by taking biopsies from the gluteus medius muscle. Histochemical stains are used to identify slow contracting type I fibres and fast contracting type IIA and type IIB fibres and to evaluate fibre areas, capillary supply, oxidative capacity, glycogen and lipid content in a muscle. Biochemical analyses of substrates, metabolites and enzyme activities are performed either on a whole piece of muscle, on pools of fibres or on single fibres of identified type.

All fibres contain glycogen whereas lipid is mainly found in type I and type IIA fibres that have smaller cross–sectional areas and a higher oxidative capacity than type IIB fibres. Large variations can be seen in metabolic profile between and within fibre types. The most common muscular adaptation to training is an increase in oxidative capacity, capillary density and an increase in the type IIA/IIB ratio. The order of recruitment of fibres during most types of exercise is from type I to type IIA and type IIB.

The higher the intensity of exercise, the faster is the breakdown of glycogen. After racing (1640-2640m), and after high intense treadmill exercise, concentrations of lactate and inosine monophosphate (IMP) are increased in the muscle and concentrations of glycogen, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and creatine phosphate (CP) decreased. Extremely low ATP and high IMP concentrations especially in some type II fibres are observed after racing.

After exercise of low intensity and long duration glycogen and triglyceride stores in muscle are utilised, amino acid metabolism is enhanced and protein degradation may occur. After submaximal treadmill exercise to fatigue and after endurance rides glycogen is degraded and depletion occurs mainly in type I and type IIA fibres.

Fibre type composition, substrate sources and differences in metabolic properties among fibres and the extent to which fibres are recruited are all factors that influence the metabolic responses of muscle to exercise. Biochemical analyses on whole muscle must be interpreted with caution since large variations in metabolic response to exercise occur among different fibres.

Type
Research Article
Information
BSAP Occasional Publication , Volume 32: Emerging Equine Science , 2004 , pp. 1 - 9
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Production 2004

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