Cardiorespiratory drift during exercise in the horse

The purpose of the present study was to measure the time-course and degree of cardiovascular and respiratory 'drift' during constant submaximal exercise in the horse. One Thoroughbred and four Morgan mares were instrumented for simultaneous measurement of respiratory and blood gases which also enabled cardiac output (Q) to be calculated. Data were collected at rest, and at 10, 20 and 30 mins during a constant workload which elicited an initial exercising heart rate (HR) of 150 beats/min, and an approximate 15-fold increase in oxygen consumption (VO2). Significant cardiac and respiratory drift during exercise were observed over time so that ventilation increased from 750 +/- 58 to 910 +/- 49 litres/min (21 per cent increase) from the 10 to 30 min time-point (P < 0.05) and HR went from 154 +/- 4 to 173 +/- 9 beats/min (mean +/- se) over the same time period (P < 0.05). Q also rose from 142 +/- 5 to 177 +/- 17 litres/min (P < 0.05) during the same interval while stroke volume (SV) was maintained. Rectal temperature (TR) and mixed venous lactate (LA) also showed significant increases during exercise while PaO2 and PaCO2 remained constant. The results indicate a significant degree of cardiac and respiratory drift in the horse in response to strenuous submaximal exercise. At the constant exercise work rate chosen, a levelling off, or plateauing of the selected parameters of interest was not observed. Therefore if a true exercising 'steady-state' was achieved, it must have occurred very early in the exercise bout.

Exercise training attenuates diet-induced reduction in metabolic rate

The combined influence of exercise training and dietary restriction on daily energy expenditure was evaluated by exposing 48 male Sprague-Dawley rats to one of three food intake conditions [ad libitum (AL), moderately restricted (MR), or severely restricted (SR)] and to one of two exercise conditions [treadmill exercised (E) or cage confined (CC)]. After 10 wk of exercise and dietary restriction, the MR-CC and MR-E rats weighed 84 and 86%, respectively, of AL-CC, whereas the SR-CC and SR-E rats weighed 66 and 68% of AL-CC. Dietary restriction and subsequent weight loss produced significant reductions in both total and resting daily energy expenditure. Exercise partially reversed this effect, but the extent of this reversal diminished as the severity of dietary restriction was increased. These results raise the distinct possibility that inconsistencies in the current literature concerning the effects of exercise on whole body metabolism during periods of dietary restriction might be reconciled by an appreciation and an understanding of the influence that duration of exercise training and severity of food restriction have on this measure.

Neither high- nor low-intensity exercise promotes whole-body conservation of protein during severe dietary restrictions

The effects of 11 weeks of severe dietary restriction alone or in combination with either high- or low-intensity exercise on conservation of protein were studied in 32 male Sprague-Dawley rats. The rats were assigned to one of four groups: sedentary control (C), diet restriction alone (DO) or diet restriction in combination with either high-intensity (HI) or low-intensity (LO) exercise. The groups trained at either 75 percent (HI) or 37.5 percent (LO) of maximal running speed for up to 45 or 90 min/day, 5 days/week, respectively. Total (g) proteins, fat, water and ash content did not differ between the DO, HI and LO groups and were all reduced significantly in comparison to C. Similarly, heart, gastrocnemius muscle and epididymal fat pad masses were significantly reduced for the DO, HI and LO groups in comparison to C. However, the absolute decrease in heart mass was reduced for the HI group (heart mass = 0.31 percent of body mass) in comparison to the DO group (heart mass = 0.28 percent of body mass). Thus, in lean rats undergoing severe dietary restrictions, neither high- nor low-intensity exercise appears to affect total protein conservation in comparison to diet alone. However, high-intensity exercise training appears to attenuate cardiac but not skeletal muscle mass loss in the face of severe dietary restriction.

Bone mechanical properties after exercise training in young and old rats

The effects of a 10-wk training regimen on the mechanical properties of the femur and humerus were evaluated in 2.5- and 25-mo-old Fischer 344 female rats. The rats trained on a rodent treadmill 5 days/wk for 10 wk. Duration, grade, and speed increased until the rats maintained 1 h/day at 15% grade and either 15 m/min (old rats) or 36 m/min (young rats). Excised bones were mechanically tested with a 3-point flexure test for mechanical properties of force, stress, and strain. Fat-free dry weight (FFW) and moment of inertia were also obtained. With aging, similar increases were observed in both the femur and humerus for FFW, moment of inertia, and force. Ultimate stress was reduced in the senescent femur while strain was elevated; a similar but nonsignificant trend was observed in the humerus. Irrespective of age, training increased FFW in the femur and, to a lesser degree, in the humerus. Breaking force was elevated for both bones after training. In young and old bones, the training-induced differences in bone mass and force were similar, despite differences in training intensity. In the old trained rats, femur ultimate stress was greater than that in control rat femurs and similar to that in young rat femurs. The results of the present study indicate that training effects were not limited by age.

Relative efficacy of heparin and related glycosaminoglycans as antithrombotic drugs

In a standardized animal model, unfractionated heparin (UFH) prevents venous thrombogenesis at a dose of 80 micrograms/kg. Oligosaccharide fragments of heparin, with very high anti-Xa activity both in vitro and in ex vivo plasma samples were less effective than UFH in preventing thrombosis. A decasaccharide fragment was virtually inactive in impairing thrombosis at this dose, although a 20-22 monosaccharide fragment showed some impairment. Dermatan sulfate, which has no anti-factor Xa activity, partially impairs both thrombin generation and stasis thrombosis. However, dermatan sulfate could not suppress thrombin generation below about 35% of control at the doses studied. Neither oligosaccharides nor dermatan sulfate were as effective on a weight basis as UFH in impairing thrombosis, particularly after 20 minutes' stasus. Maximal antithrombotic effects are achieved when both factor Xa and thrombin are inhibited. Drugs which act primarily on factor Xa (oligosaccharides) or thrombin by non-ATIII pathways (dermatan sulfate) are less efficient than UFH as antithrombotic drugs.

The relative antithrombotic effectiveness of heparin, a low molecular weight heparin, and a pentasaccharide fragment in an animal model

The antithrombotic efficacy of unfractionated heparin (UFH), a low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) and a synthetic pentasaccharide (PENTA) has been compared in an animal model for stasis thrombosis. We have also compared the relative ability of these three agents to impair thrombin generation in vitro and in vivo, and measured their effects on anti-Xa activity and thrombin clotting times. UFH, LMWH and PENTA all had the capacity to impair thrombogenesis, although there were marked differences in their relative effectiveness. Reduction of thrombin generation to 20% of control values was closely correlated with the prevention of thrombosis after 20 minutes' stasis, but this was only achieved with UFH. The same dry weight dose of LMWH or PENTA reduced thrombin generation to about half control values, and neither significantly impaired thrombus formation after 20 minutes' stasis. Impaired thrombin generation correlated better than anti-Xa activity with prevention of stasis thrombosis. In this model, UFH was clearly superior to LMWH and PENTA as an antithrombotic agent.

The anticoagulant activity of heparin: measurement and relationship to chemical structure

For many years the anticoagulant activity of heparin has been estimated by coagulation assays, in which the prolongation of clotting times by heparin is measured under various conditions. More recently, assays have been developed which measure the inhibitory action of heparin on isolated coagulation enzymes, notably Factor Xa and thrombin, using specific amidolytic peptide substrates. The anticoagulant activity of heparin arises primarily from its ability to bind to antithrombin III (AT III), altering the conformation and enhancing the activity of this major protease inhibitor. Passage of heparin through an immobilised AT III column yields two fractions: a high affinity fraction with 300-350 iu mg-1 anticoagulant activity, comprising one-third of the total, and a low affinity fraction with an activity of less than 10 iu mg-1, comprising the remaining two-thirds. Studies in several laboratories have demonstrated that a specific pentasaccharide sequence is required for AT III binding. The authors have shown that the presence or absence of this sequence can be detected by high-field proton NMR, thus providing a semi-quantitative method for a functionally important group. A second major influence on anticoagulant activity is molecular weight distribution. Studies in the authors' laboratory on a series of fractions of 5000-35,000 showed that whereas anticoagulant activity in APTT clotting assays decreased with decreasing molecular weight (Mr), activity in anti-Xa assays was maintained or increased in the low Mr fractions. However, in vivo studies showed that high affinity fragments with anti-Xa activity only were poor antithrombotic agents. It appears that the presence of the AT III binding site alone is not sufficient for full antithrombotic activity; an extra length of polysaccharide chain of at least 15 residues is required. Molecular weight distribution is readily assessed by HPLC, although the lack of suitable reference materials hampers assignment of absolute molecular weights. Important determinants of anticoagulant activity can now be assessed by physicochemical techniques but, at present, these techniques are not precise enough to replace anticoagulant assays as predictors of in vivo behaviour.

Heparin and bleeding: an association with lipase release

The effects of four sulphated polysaccharides on bleeding time and lipase release in rabbits have been compared. Unfractionated heparin (UFH) and pentosan polysulphate both gave significant prolongation of bleeding times and high lipase release. Low molecular weight heparin had reduced effects on bleeding time and lipase release, while dermatan sulphate had no influence on either parameter. There was a highly significant correlation (r = 0.97) between these two measurements. These results suggest that the same structural features influence both the haemorrhagic and lipase-releasing properties of sulphated polysaccharides.

Effects of beta-adrenergic blockade on training-induced structural adaptations in rat left ventricle

The study was designed to evaluate the effects of eight weeks of exercise training or training-beta-adrenergic blockade combination on gross and microscopic alterations of rat cardiac muscle and microvascular bed. Rats were randomly assigned to either sedentary control (C), trained (T), metoprolol-trained (MT), or propranolol-trained (PT) groups. The training protocol involved treadmill running for 8 weeks at 0.5 ms-1, 20% grade. Earlier experiments by us showed this training protocol to be effective in producing significant changes in selected skeletal muscle enzyme activities in all trained groups. In the current study an absolute reduction in left ventricular (LV) weight was observed in the PT compared to the C group (0.91 +/- 0.02 vs. 1.04 +/- 0.04 g, P less than 0.05). LV weight in the T and MT groups was no different from C so that LV to BW ratio (mg.g-1) was significantly increased (P less than 0.05) due to a similar reduction in body weight (BW) in all three training groups. Morphometric analysis of LV myocardium revealed no significant differences in myocyte mean cross-sectional area (micron 2) in any of the groups (289 +/- 16-C, 332 +/- 20-T, 281 +/- 44-MT, and 273 +/- 12-PT). Capillary density independently calculated by light and electron microscopy was unchanged by training or training-beta-blockade combination. It was concluded that training of sufficient intensity and duration to produce skeletal muscle enzyme adaptations does not necessarily produce myocyte hypertrophy or alter LV capillarity. Additionally functioning beta-adrenergic receptors appear to play a role in both the central and peripheral adaptations to endurance exercise training.

An international standard for low molecular weight heparin

An international collaborative study has been carried out with the aim of establishing an international standard for low molecular weight (LMW) heparin. Three preparations of LMW heparin were assayed against the International Standard for unfractionated heparin (UFH) by 25 laboratories in 13 countries, using nine different assay methods. The results confirmed previous findings of non-parallel assays, wide interlaboratory variability and differences between methods when LMW heparins are assayed against a UFH standard. Use of one of the LMW heparins as a standard for the other two gave parallel assays and much closer agreement between laboratories. The preparation in ampoules coded 85/600 was selected as likely to give the best agreement with the largest number of LMW heparins; potencies were assigned by taking the mean of all the anti-Xa assays, and the mean of the thrombin and APTT assays, to represent the two major groups of activities. Preparation 85/600 has been established by WHO as the 1st International Standard for LMW heparin, with potencies of 1,680 iu/ampoule by anti-Xa assays and 665 iu/ampoule by thrombin inhibition and APTT assays.

Effects of repeated exhaustive exercise on myocardial subcellular membrane structures

The effects of a single vs repeated bouts of exhaustive exercise on myocardial integrity were evaluated in the rodent. Rats were randomly divided into three groups: a sedentary control, single swim-to-exhaustion, and seven consecutive daily swims-to-exhaustion groups (n = 5 in each group). Overall morphology was evaluated histologically and sarcolemmal (SL), sarcotubular (ST), and mitochondrial (MITO) membranes were examined ultrastructurally using transmission electron microscopy. Neither single nor repeated bouts of exhaustive exercise produced myocardial hypoxia, as assessed by MITO morphology. However, increased interstitial space as well as significant swelling (P less than 0.01) was observed in ST from both 1- and 7-day exhausted animals. These findings were not observed at all in control myocardium. Higher magnification (x 45,000) in some instances revealed whole disruption of sarcotubular membranes in myocardium from swim-exhausted animals. The incidence of membrane disruption was higher (P less than 0.01) in 7-day vs 1-day swim-exhausted groups and not observed at all in control rats. Although in no instance did we observe disruption of SL membranes, their convoluted nature in myocardium from both exercised groups indicated exhaustion-induced fluid and/or ionic shifts within the left ventricle. These findings provide a structural basis for the reduction in myocardial sarcoplasmic reticulum and MITO Ca++ uptake previously observed following repeated bouts of exhaustive exercise.