Biochemistry of sheep tissues. Enzyme systems of liver, brain and kidney

Abstract

The activities of a number of enzyme systems of sheep liver, brain and kidney have been investigated. Sheep tissues in general have 1/3 to 1/2 of the enzymic activities reported for rat tissues. High liver catalase is the outstanding feature found in sheep. Young sheep have lower cytochrome oxidase activity than adults. Liver enzyme preparations are unable to catabolize glucose owing to glucokinase deficiency. The possible significance of this in relation to ruminant metabolism is discussed. The dependence of sheep-liver metabolism upon the oxidation of fatty acids is suggested as a factor of possible importance in ruminant diseases.