Effects of lactic acid accumulation and ATP decrease on muscle tension and relaxation

The present study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of lactic acid accumulation on peak tension and relaxation rate of the isometric twitch. Isolated extensor digitorum longus muscle from rat was stimulated electrically at a frequency of 2/s under anaerobic conditions. Comparison was made with muscles in which glycolysis was blocked with iodoacetic acid (IAA). Stimulation of unpoisoned muscles for 3 min decreased tension to 50% and increased relaxation time to 250% of the initial value. Lactate increased 15-fold, and muscle pH decreased from 7.10 to 6.76. Stimulation of IAA-poisoned muscles for 1 min decreased tension to 50% but did not increase the relaxation time. Stimulation of IAA-poisoned muscle resulted in a pronounced decrease (about 50%) of the ATP and total adenine nucleotide content in muscle, whereas only a small decrease (10-15%) occurred in unpoisoned muscle. The main findings in the present study were that tension decline in unpoisoned muscle is closely related to decrease in muscle pH and increase in ADP but not to ATP content per se and that slowing of relaxation rate is closely related to decrease in muscle pH but not to muscle content of ATP or creatine phosphate.