EXERCISE-INDUCED CHANGES IN BLOOD COMPOSITION OF RACING REINDEER (RANGIFER-TARANDUS-TARANDUS L)

The responses to near-maximal exercise before and after the training a nd racing season were examined in reindeer. The reindeer were tested w hen pulling a driver at a speed of 11-12 m/s for 600 m. The lactate re sponses were higher before than after training. Similarly, the accumul ation of uric acid, a breakdown product of ATP, became attenuated afte r training. The serum concentrations of nonesterified fatty acids decr eased or did not change after exercise, although an increase in the gl ycerol concentration indicates activation of lipolysis. The concentrat ion of alanine increased after both tests, and at rest the concentrati ons of several amino acids, e.g., glutamine, isoleucine, and tyrosine, were higher and the concentrations of serum protein and urea were low er during spring than at the beginning of the training period. It can be concluded that the carbohydrate metabolism of the reindeer responds to exercise and training similarly to that in other athletic species, but further studies are needed to explain the observed changes in lip id and protein metabolites.