Energy phosphate turnover and glycolysis in skeletal muscle of the Piètrain pig: The effects of premedication with azaperone and pentobarbitone anaesthesia

Abstract

The semitendinosus muscle of Piètrain pigs which were premedicated with azaperone and anaesthetized with pentobarbitone exhibited the slow rates of glycolysis and energy phosphate turnover that are characteristic of resting muscle from stress-resistant pigs and the rabbit. Curarization did not reduce further the rate at which such changes occurred. The results suggest that the high rate of energy phosphate hydrolysis usually associated with Piètrain muscle may have its origin within the nervous system rather than in the skeletal musculature itself. In the absence of neural stimulation, the rates at which such changes occur in resting muscle appear to be similar for both the Piètrain and stress-resistant breeds of pig.