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Nutritional muscular dystrophy production and pectoral muscle 5'-nucleotidase activity in the chick

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Title Nutritional muscular dystrophy production and pectoral muscle 5'-nucleotidase activity in the chick
Names Roffler, Sheila Ann (creator)
Weswig, Paul H. (advisor)
Date Issued 1964-07-30 (iso8601)
Note Graduation date: 1965
Abstract In an attempt to find a laboratory species which develops an
experimental myopathy similar to white muscle disease (WMD) in
lambs, comparative studies of nutritional muscular dystrophy of
chicks were initiated. This condition was grossly visible as white
striations running parallel with the fibers of the pectoral muscles and
was routinely produced with a diet containing 15 percent casein and
10 percent gelatin as the protein source. Maximum incidence and
severity were observed at four weeks of age.
Feeding experiments indicated that selenium supplementation
was not as effective in prevention of the symptoms as in lambs and
that vitamin E was more effective. Selenium addition at one ppm did
not reduce the incidence of lesions as had been previously reported
by other workers. A definite synergism between vitamin E and
selenium was demonstrated. Neither vitamin E supplementation at
2.5 mg per kg diet nor selenium as sodium selenite at one ppm appreciably
reduced the incidence of dystrophy but a combination of these
two treatments reduced the occurrence of the syndrome by more than
50 percent. A complete prevention of white striations was not obtained
with the combined treatment.
The activity of 5'-nucleotidase was not elevated in the
dystrophic pectoral muscle as has been reported for lamb tissue.
The specific activity (μM P[subscript i]/mg N/hr) of the enzyme was found to be
very low in both normal and degenerated muscle. Development of
assay conditions is described. The routine assay of dystrophic
versus non-dystrophic tissues was carried out at pH 8.9 in 0.25 M
glycine buffer. The probable 5'-nucleotidase activity was calculated
by subtracting the μmoles of phosphorus liberated from p-nitrophenyl
phosphate from that liberated from adenosine-5'-monophosphate
after one hour incubation at 38°C.
The results did not indicate that the myopathies which occur
in the lamb and the chick are the same or similar.
Genre Thesis/Dissertation
Topic Muscular dystrophy
Identifier http://hdl.handle.net/1957/49038

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