Regional blood flow and skeletal muscle energy status in endotoxemic rats

Endotoxins induce muscle wasting in part as a result of depressed protein synthesis. To investigate whether these changes reflect impaired energy transduction, blood flow, O2 extraction, and high-energy phosphates in muscle and whole-body O2 consumption (VO2) have been measured. VO2 was measured for 6h after an initial sublethal dose of endotoxin (Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide 0.3 mg/100 g body wt sc) or saline and during 6h after a second dose 24 h later. In fed or fasted rats, VO2 was either increased or better maintained after endotoxin. In anesthetized fed rats 3-4 after the second dose of endotoxin VO2 was increased, and this was accompanied by increased blood flow to liver (hepatic arterial supply), kidney, and perirenal brown adipose tissue and a 57 and 64% decrease in flow to back and hindlimb muscle, respectively, with no change in any other organ. Hindlimb arteriovenous O2 was unchanged, indicating markedly decreased aerobic metabolism in muscle, and the contribution of the hindlimb to whole-body VO2 decreased by 46%. Adenosine 5'-triphosphate levels in muscle were unchanged in endotoxin-treated rats, and this was confirmed by topical nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, which also showed muscle pH to be unchanged. These results show that although there is decreased blood flow and aerobic oxidation in muscle, adenosine 5'-triphosphate availability does not appear to be compromised so that the endotoxin-induced muscle catabolism and decreased protein synthesis must reflex some other mechanism.