Distribution of Glycogen, Lipid and Glucose-6-phosphate Dehydrogenase Activity in the Adrenal Cortex of the Sodium-Depleted Rat: A Histochemical Study

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Abstract
Three groups of 8 young (80 g) male white rats were placed on a sodiumdepleted diet for periods of 2, 3 and 10 weeks, respectively. For each experimental group 2 control animals were maintained on a standard diet. At the end of the set period of time the animals were sacrificed and the adrenals were studied using histochemical methods for the demonstration of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity, glcogen and lipid. It was found that glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase became very active in the glomerulosa cells of these sodium-depleted animals and that this effect was more marked in the young animal than had been observed previously in adults. Increased enzyme activity persisted for the entire 10-week period of sodium depletion, although maximal glomerulosa width was attained by 3 weeks. Glycogen was considerably less concentrated in the glomerulosa of both control and sodium-depleted animals than it was in the fascicular and reticular zones. Lipid was consistently less concentrated in the widened glomerulosa of the sodium-depleted animal than in the control. The concentration of lipid in the inner zones of control and experimental animals tended to be more variable. It is suggested that increased activity of G-6-P dehydrogenase in the glomerulosa of sodium-depleted rats may be a response to a demand for energy and a TPNH generating system for the production of increased quantities of aldosterone, and that the carbohydrate metabolism of the glomerulosa may be functioning under different influences than those of the inner zones.