Influence of fasting on lung oxygen consumption and respiratory quotient

We measured the oxygen consumption (QO2) of lung slices from rats and rabbits and the respiratory quotient (RQ) of lung slices from fed and fasted rats. The QO2 of lung slices is lowered within 24 h after the onset of food deprivation; this decrease in QO2 lasts during at least 2 additional days of fasting and is not eliminated by addition of glucose to the reaction medium. In fed rats the RQ of lung slices after 30 min of incubation without glucose is 0.75 +/- 0.01 (mean +/- SE) and 0.96 +/- 0.02 with glucose present. Fasting for 72 h lowers the RQ of lung slices after 30 min of incubation without glucose to 0.68 +/- 0.03; addition of glucose raises the RQ of lung slices from 72-h-fasted rats to 0.76 +/- 0.02. We conclude that fasting depresses lung oxidative metabolism. In the fed rat glucose is a major substrate for oxidative processes but in the fasting rat the oxidation of glucose is impaired and lipids are an important source of lung energy.