THE INFLUENCE OF SELECTION ON REACTION TO STRESS IN MICE V - THE EFFECT OF STARVATION AND GLUTATHIONE INJECTION ON THE ACTIVITY OF N-ACETYL-BETA-GLUCOSAMINIDASE AND THE LEVEL OF GLUTATHIONE IN THE LIVER

The experiment was conducted on 40 6-week-old mice selected for a high rate of body weight gain and 40 unselected controls. Model stressors were used: starvation for 24 h, injection of glutathione and both stre ssors jointly. Measurements were made of N-acetyl-beta-glucosaminidase (NAGL) activity and the level of non-protein sulfhydryl groups in the liver. Starvation, glutathione injection and starvation with glutathi one injection jointly caused an increase of NAGL activity, which was m ore marked in the selected mice. Starvation caused a decrease of gluta thione level, glutathione injection and both stressors jointly caused an increase in the level of glutathione. The reactions of selected mic e were stronger in comparison with unselected ones. The results sugges t that the mice selected for a high rate of body weight gain were less resistant to starvation and glutathione injection than the unselected mice.