Association of chronic congestive heart failure in humans with an intrinsic upregulation in skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium ion adenosine triphosphatase activity

This study examined the maximal calcium ion adenosine triphosphatase activi ty of the sarcoplasmic reticulum in skeletal muscle in 18 men and 6 women w ith chronic congestive heart failure (average left ventricular ejection fra ction 24 +/- 2%, mean +/- SE). Eight men and 9 women served as age-matched healthy controls. It was found that calcium ion adenosine triphosphatase ac tivity was higher (p < 0.05) in patients with chronic congestive heart fail ure than in controls, which could not be explained by gender differences or differences in the oxidative and glycolytic potential of the muscle.