Muscle respiratory capacity and VO2 max in identically trained young and old rats
Abstract
Old rats have a decreased hindlimb muscle respiratory capacity and whole-body maximal O2 consumption (VO2 max). The decline in spontaneous physical activity in old rats might contribute to these age-related changes. The magnitude of the age-related decline is not uniform in all skeletal muscle respiratory enzymes, and the decrease in palmitate oxidation is particularly great. This study was designed to determine if young and old rats subjected to the same exercise-training protocol would attain similar values for VO2 max and several markers of muscle respiratory capacity. Four- and 18-mo-old Fischer 344 rats underwent an identical 6-mo program of treadmill running. After training, both age groups had increased VO2 max above sedentary age-matched controls. However, the old trained rats had a lower VO2 max than identically trained young rats. In contrast to VO2 max, the two trained groups attained similar values for gastrocnemius citrate synthase, cytochrome oxidase, 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, palmitate oxidation, and total carnitine concentration. Thus, when the young and old rats performed an identical exercise protocol within the capacity of the old animals, differences in skeletal muscle respiratory capacity were eliminated. The dissimilarity in VO2 max between the identically trained groups was apparently caused by age-related differences in factors other than muscle respiratory capacity.
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Whether the effects of exercise are the same in aged individuals as opposed to adults with obesity remains equivocal and is likely influenced by long-term diet and physical activity patterns.
“Whether these effects of exercise are the same in aged individuals, as opposed to adults with obesity remains equivocal [110–112] and is likely influenced by long-term diet and physical activity patterns.”
From Targeting Intramyocellular Lipids to Improve Aging Muscle Function (2025) · cites this paper as [110]
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- Authors
- Cartee, G. D., & Farrar, R. P.
- Affiliations
- The University of Texas at Austin (US)
- ORCID
- Cartee, G. D.
- Venue
- Journal of Applied Physiology
- Publisher
- American Physiological Society
- Published
- 1987-07-01
- Volume
- 63
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 257-261
- ISSN
- 0161-7567 (ISSN-L)
- 8750-7587
- 1522-1601
- OpenAlex
- W2287173246
- Cited by
- 71
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2025: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 3 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 3.62
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Applied Physiology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Aging (AG02071)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Rehabilitation › Exercise and Physiological Responses
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Muscle metabolism and nutrition
- Keywords
- VO2max, aging, exercise training, treadmill running, skeletal muscle, citrate synthase, cytochrome c oxidase, 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, palmitate oxidation, L-carnitine, gastrocnemius, age-related decline, F344 rats
- MeSH terms
- Aging, Animals, Physical Exertion, Male, Muscles, Oxygen Consumption, Rats, Inbred F344, Muscle Development, Rats
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