Fractional Synthesis Rates of Individual Proteins in Rat Soleus and Plantaris Muscles

Differences in the protein composition of fast- and slow-twitch muscle may be maintained by different rates of protein turnover. We investigated protein turnover rates in slow-twitch soleus and fast-twitch plantaris of male Wistar rats (body weight 412 ± 69 g). Animals were assigned to four groups (n = 3, in each), including a control group (0 d) and three groups that received deuterium oxide (D(2)O) for either 10 days, 20 days or 30 days. D(2)O administration was initiated by an intraperitoneal injection of 20 μL of 99% D(2)O-saline per g body weight, and maintained by provision of 4% (v/v) D(2)O in the drinking water available ad libitum. Soluble proteins from harvested muscles were analysed by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry and identified against the SwissProt database. The enrichment of D(2)O and rate constant (k) of protein synthesis was calculated from the abundance of peptide mass isotopomers. The fractional synthesis rate (FSR) of 44 proteins in soleus and 34 proteins in plantaris spanned from 0.58%/day (CO1A1: Collagen alpha-1 chain) to 5.40%/day NDRG2 (N-myc downstream-regulated gene 2 protein). Eight out of 18 proteins identified in both muscles had a different FSR in soleus than in plantaris (p < 0.05).