Lysosomal changes related to exercise injuries and training-induced protection in mouse skeletal muscle

Three experiments were designed to study the lysosomal changes associated with the development and maintenance of the endurance training induced resistance against exercise injuries in mouse skeletal muscles. The activities of arylsulphatase, cathepsin C, cathepsin D, and beta-glucuronidase were assayed from the red part of mouse quadriceps femoris muscle 4 days after prolonged strenuous running of 4-9 h duration. Exercise injuries were characterized by necrotic fibers and focal inflammation. Strenuous running of untrained mice induced necrotic lesions and a 4-5 fold increase in the activities of lysosomal enzymes. This lysosomal response was considerably reduced already by daily training b…