Relative independence of metabolic enzymes and neuromuscular activity

Abstract

Effects of spinal cord transection in 2-wk-old cats on the metabolic, histochemical, and fatigue properties of a fast- and a slow-twitch muscle were determined. Chronic (6–12 mo) spinalization (Sp) resulted in an increased ratio of fast-twitch, oxidative-glycolytic (FOG) to slow-twitch, oxidative (SO) fibers in soleus (SOL). In medial gastrocnemius (MG), Sp produced a histochemical profile suggesting that fast fibers were increased at the expense of slow fibers. Changes in biochemical markers for oxidative (citrate synthase) and glycolytic (GPD) potential were consistent with the histochemical findings. The fatigue index of Sp MG and SOL remained normal and was consistent with the type and degree of fiber type change. Daily treadmill exercise did not markedly alter any of the adaptations. The metabolic and fatigue properties of skeletal muscle of Sp cats are consistent with the view that as some fibers develop “faster-like” characteristics, the oxidative and the glycolytic potential is also enhanced. As was true of the contractile properties and related biochemical data, the changes observed suggest that significant changes occurred within as well as across fiber types. These data, in conjunction with that of chronic EMG recordings, provide evidence that there is a relative independence of both the oxidative potential and the fatigability of a muscle relative to its quantity of activation.