Biochemical and Ultrastructural Study of Glycogen in Jejunal Mucosa of Diabetic Rats

The glycogen concentration of jejunal mucosa was 423 μg/g or 0.04% of wet weight in normal rats. Diabetes was accompanied by a twofold increase in glycogen content whereas a 72-hr fast produced a 50% reduction of gut glycogen. In absorptive cells of diabetic rats β glycogen was observed throughout the cytoplasm but appeared particularly abundant in the terminal web region. The adaptive responses of gut glycogen levels to fasting and refeeding were similar to changes in the activities of gut glycolytic enzymes but glycogen and enzyme changes were less marked than those observed for liver of the same animals.