Effect of Starvation on Tissues from the Young of Four Species, with Emphasis on the Number and Diameter of Skeletal Muscle Fibers

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Abstract
Summary: Young rats, rabbits, guinea pigs, and hamsters were decreased in body weight by 39, 45, 34, and 35%, respectively, by a total deprivation of food for 3, 15, 4, and 4.5 days, respectively. The weight of the heart, liver, and kidneys from each of the four species (with the exception of the kidneys from the guinea pig) decreased significantly in the starved animals. After starvation in all four species, 0 to 15% of the original weight of the epididymal and perirenal fat pads remained. The effect of total starvation on the weight of skeletal muscles differed for the same muscle in different species and among the three muscles studied within a species. Starvation caused weight losses in the following muscles from the rat, rabbit, guinea pig, and hamster, respectively: soleus, 15, 8, 14, and 30% plantaris, 23, 54, 41, and 24%; biceps brachii, 27, 52, 42, and 29%. The significant loss of weight in the plantaris and biceps brachii muscles from rabbits and guinea pigs were caused by large decreases in the diameter of the fibers, with no change in the number of fibers. Soleus and plantaris muscles from hamsters decreased in weight by a reduction in fiber diameters but no change in the number of fibers; the weight of the biceps brachii decreased by a reduction in fiber number only. A reduction in the number of fibers occurred in all muscles from starved rats; the diameter of the fibers was reduced in the plantaris and biceps brachii muscles. No structural damage to the fibers due to starvation was observed under the light microscope in any muscle from the four species. Speculation: The effect of starvation on the weight of several tissues and the cellularity of skeletal muscles varied considerably among the young of four species. Some frequently studied animal models may not replicate accurately the changes observed in tissue weight and in muscle cellularity observed in severely undernourished children.