Effects of Glycogen Supercompensation in Fast and Slow Muscles on Maximal Running Time of Endurance-trained Rats

단련한 흰쥐의 속근 및 지근에 Glycogen 과저장이 운동 지구력에 미치는 영향

This study was carried out to investigate relationships between maximal running time (MRT) and glycogen supercompensation in fast twitch white fibers (white vastus, WV), fast twitch red fibers (red vastus, RV) and slow twitch red fibers (soleus muscle, SM) of endurance-trained rats. Male rats of a Sprague-Dawley strain were divided into the trained groups and untrained groups. Untrained groups were acquired to run on the treadmill 10 minutes for 3 days and remained rest and maintained with mixed diet for 4 weeks. For last 10 days of resting period, the untrained rats were divided into 3 groups i.e. mixed diet (untrained control), high and low carbohydrate (CHO) diet groups. And each group was subdivided into 2 groups, one group was tested for the MRT and the other was sacrificed to measure the blood glucose, blood lactate, glycogen contents of liver and muscles. The experimental groups were trained on treadmill by a modified method of Constable et al. (1984) maintained with mixed diet for 4 weeks. After measurement of MRT of this group, they were also divided into high and low CHO groups and fed with these diet for 2 days and MRT of each group was measured again to see the effect of high or low CHO feeding on the MRT. Each group was maintained with the same diet for next 2 days during which some of the rats were sacrificed at given time intervals for the measurements of blood glucose and lactate, liver and the muscles glycogen. The results were summarized as follows; 1) In the untrained group, there were no significant differences between subgroups in MRT, glycogen conent of SM, RV and WV. But blood glucose concentration and glycogen content of liver of low CHO group were significantly lower than those of mixed diet group. 2) The MRT and glycogen content of SM, RV and WV of trained mixed diet group were significantly increased compared to those of untrained mixed diet group, but there was no significant difference in glycogen content of liver. 3) MRT of trained mixed, high CHO and low CHO groups were $137{\pm}9.8,\;176{\pm}9.8\;and\;129{\pm}7.3\;min$ respectively with the significant difference between them. 4) There were no differences in blood lactate concentrations between the trained high and low CHO groups immediately after maximal running and during recovery period. 5) Glycogen contents in RV and SM of trained high CHO group were significantly increased, and glycogen contents in RV, WV and liver of trained low CHO group were significantly decreased compared to those of trained mixed diet group. 6) Immediately after maximal running, the blood glucose concentrations of trained high CHO and low CHO groups were $73{\pm}4.0\;and\;67{\pm}6.9mg%$ respecitively. The blood glucose of the trained high CHO group was fully recovered within one hour by feeding. But blood glucose concentration of low CHO group was slowly recovered up to $114{\pm}4.1mg%$ after two hours of feeding and maintained. Those values were still significantly lower than that of trained mixed diet group. The synthetic rates of glycogen in liver and muscles during the recovery period followed the similar time course of the blood glucose recoveries in each group. These results suggest that an increase in MRT of trained high CHO group was attributed to the glycogen supercompensation in slow twitch muscle fibers. And a decrease in MRT of trained low CHO may be due to decreased glycogen contents of liver and muscles. The results also suggest that glycogen supercompensation was more evident in slow twitch red fibers of endurance-trained rats and blood glucose is one of the limiting factors of glycogen synthesis.