Iron deficiency in the rat. Physiological and biochemical studies of muscle dysfunction.
Work performance on a treadmill has been evaluated in normal and iron-deficient rats. Anemia was removed as a variable by adjusting the hemoglobin of all animals to the same concentration. At a hemoglobin compatible with normal work performance, iron-deficient animals showed a marked impairment of running ability as compared to control animals. Iron therapy corrected the disability within 4 days. Concentrations of the cytochrome pigments and myoglobin, and rates of oxidative phosphorylation with pyruvate-malate, succinate, and alpha-glycerophosphate as substrates were all reduced in mitochondrial preparations from skeletal muscle of iron-deficient rats, but only the rate of phosphorylation with alpha-glycerophosphate as substrate increased significantly and in parallel with the recovery in work performance of the iron-deficient rats treated with iron dextran.
D000747:Anemia, Hypochromic / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D000818:Animals; D003580:Cytochromes / Q000032:analysis; D000090463:Iron Deficiencies; D008297:Male; D009132:Muscles / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism; D009211:Myoglobin / Q000032:analysis; D010085:Oxidative Phosphorylation; D005082:Physical Exertion; D051381:Rats
D003580:Cytochromes; D009211:Myoglobin