Seasonal changes in glucose tolerance and glycogen disposition in a lizard

Abstract

Forty milligrams of glucose in 0.4 ml of water were injected intraperitoneally into fasted adult male lizards, Anolis carolinensis, in different seasons. At intervals of 3 hr to 5 days following injection lizards were sacrificed and their tissues analyzed for carbohydrate. Blood glucose returned to fasting level in less than 36 hr in spring and summer but remained above fasting level for over 2 days during autumn and winter. Generally, 4–6 g of glycogen were deposited per 100 g of liver per day. Greater quantities of glycogen were deposited in liver during autumn than in other seasons. The rate of decrease of liver glycogen was slowest in autumn and winter. Extrahepatic glycogen did not increase after glucose injection in early summer and autumn but rose significantly in winter and spring. The decreased "glucose tolerance" of Anolis and its increased capacity to store glycogen in autumn and winter may be due to a decreased rate of carbohydrate oxidation in these seasons.