Effect of hormones on the development of creatine kinase activity in rat skeletal muscle.

Various approaches have been used in order to determine whether or not a certain hormone is a stimulus for the development of the muscle-specific enzyme, creatine kinase. Both thyroxine and glucocorticoids can be considered as naturally occurring stimuli for the synthesis of creatine kinase. The maximum increase of creatine kinase activity after stimulation by glucocorticoids (about 25%) occurs between 5 and 7 days after birth. A single injection of thyroxine has virtually no effect during this period. However, when a pretreatment with thyroxine is given, cortisone acetate administration increases creatine kinase activity to about 155%. The effect of cortisone acetate is due to de novo synthesis of creatine kinase. The augmentation of the effect of cortisone acetate by thyroxine is dependent on DNA synthesis. Thyroxine administration apparently causes the formation of more competent muscle cells. The effects of both hormones are age-dependent. Thyroxine and cortisone acetate administration to fetuses can prematurely evoke to MM isoenzyme of creatine kinase. Both hormones probably play a role in the activation of the M gene during embryonic development. Sex hormones are able to influence neither creatine kinase activity nor muscle growth. However, castration of male rats immediately after birth causes an impairment of growth at older ages. The androgen production by the testes immediately after birth seems to be of main importance for body growth development. It can be concluded from these results that creatine kinase in muscle is under multiple hormonal control, just as is observed for a number of enzymes in other tissues.