Metabolic effects of testosterone during prolonged physical exercise and fasting

Previous studies have shown a decrease in plasma testosterone during prolonged physical exercise and 72 h fasting in rats. To determine whether this hormonal change has an influence upon energy metabolism, two experiments were carried out, in which the plasma levels of testosterone were elevated during prolonged physical exercise and fasting in male wistar rats. The effects of acute and chronic increases in the levels of circulating testosterone were studied, on the one hand after human chorionic gonadotropin (H.C.G.) injection, and on the other by prolonged testosterone perfusion with an osmotic minipump. Blood and tissue sampling were performed to evaluate blood glucose, alanine, and lactate, and tissue glycogen. The results in fed and rest control rats showed no changes in blood parameters under the effect of hypertestosteronemia but there was an increase in muscle glycogen after testosterone perfusion. In 72 h fasted rats both types of hypertestosteronemia were associated with a decrease in blood alanine and lactate ranging from 25% to 35%. Only testosterone perfusion was associated with higher concentrations of muscle glycogen. After 7 h of treadmill running, testosterone perfusion and H.C.G. injection induced a 35% decrease in blood alanine and a slight decrease in blood glucose, with no change in other parameters. Whereas an elevation in the level of testosterone can induce muscle glycogen compensation in the fed resting state, it cannot counteract the exhaustion of muscle glycogen during running.