Glycogen, Glucose Tolerance and Tissue Metabolism in Potassium-Deficient Rats

Abstract

Four-week-old male rats of the Holtzman strain were pair-fed a K-deficient diet (0.3 mM K/100 g.) or a control diet (31.4 mM K/100 g.) for 8 days. After this time the muscle K was reduced about 40% in the deficient animals. Reduced glucose tolerance after intraven. injn. was found in the K-deficient animals as compared to the controls. Fasting liver-glycogen was higher in the deficient animals than in the controls, and a similar trend was evident in skeletal muscle. No difference between the 2 groups was found with respect to fasting blood glucose concn., oral glucose tolranece or rates of O2 consumption of liver, cerebral cortex, kidney cortex, skeletal muscle or diaphragm. Anaerobic glycolysis of diaphragm in K-free medium was slightly higher in K-deficient than in control animals.