The hepatic glycogenolysis induced by reversible ischaemia or KCN is exclusively catalysed by phosphorylase a

1. Ischaemia was applied for 30 min to the liver of Wistar rats and of gsd/gsd rats, which have a genetic deficiency of phosphorylase kinase. The rate of glycogenolysis corresponded closely to the concentration of phosphorylase a. The loss of glycogen from Wistar livers was accounted for by the intrahepatic increase in glucose plus lactate. Further, the accumulation of oligosaccharides was negligible in the gsd/gsd liver. 2. Isolated hepatocytes from Wistar and gsd/gsd rats were incubated for 40 min in the presence of either KCN or glucagon. Again, the production of glucose plus lactate was strictly dependent on the presence of phosphorylase a. However, the catalytic efficiency of phosphorylase a was about 2-fold higher in the presence of KCN. 3. We conclude that the hepatic glycogenolysis induced by anoxia and by KCN is solely mediated by phosphorylase a. The higher catalytic activity of phosphorylase a under these circumstances could be due to an increased concentration of the substrate Pi.