The effect of ketone bodies on protein turnover in isolated skeletal muscle from the fed and fasted chick.

1. The addition of 4 mM acetoacetate or DL-beta-hydroxybutyrate to the incubation medium decreased the rate of protein synthesis without influencing the rate of protein degradation in extensor digitorum communis (EDC) muscles from fed chicks and decreased the rates of protein synthesis and degradation in muscles from fasted chicks. 2. Ketone bodies markedly decreased intracellular concentrations of glutamine in EDC muscles from fed chicks by increasing glutamine oxidation. 3. The addition of 0.5 mM glutamine to incubation media containing 1.0 mM glutamine reversed the ketone body-induced decrease in intracellular glutamine concentration to the control value and blocked the inhibiting effect of ketone bodies on protein synthesis in skeletal muscles from fed chicks. 4. The addition of 5 mM pyruvate blocked the ability of ketone bodies to increase glutamine oxidation and prevented the associated decrease in intracellular glutamine concentration and the rate of protein synthesis in EDC muscles from fed chicks. 5. These results suggest that ketone bodies can act directly on skeletal muscle to inhibit the rate of protein synthesis in muscles from fed chicks by decreasing intracellular glutamine concentration by increasing its oxidation.