ENZYME STUDIES RELATED TO SEX DIFFERENCES IN MICE WITH HEREDITARY MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY

The activities of enzymes involved in glycolysis in muscle and serum were studied in relation to sex differences in heterozygous and dystrophic mice at 7 weeks of age. Muscle of female dystrophic mice had a greater percent loss in activity in enzymes involved in the glycogen cycle and glycolytic pathway than in the males. The percent increases in enzyme activity in the pentose shunt were not significantly different for both sexes. There is an over-all effect on enzyme activity for muscle glycolysis and not a specific enzyme deficiency which produces the clinical manifestations in mice with muscular dystrophy.