Relación músculo-hueso en ratones adultos de una población segregante discriminados por su conformación corporal en tres edades

Abstract

Hooper’s hypothesis postulates that the longitudinal growth of bone increases the mass of the skeletal muscles inserted which in turn affects the weight of the bone. In order to characterize these associations, the muscle-bone relationship in male and female mice belonging to a segregating population (F2) derived from crossing two lines selected for body conformation that differ in body weight but not in femur length was studied. Animals, within sex, were discriminated using the individual values of body weight and skeletal length recorded at weaning (21 days), at the age of selection (49 days), and the asymptotic values of both variables estimated using the Gompertz equation. Four groups resulting from all possible combinations between high and low biomass and high and low skeleton length were defined. The study of group effect on five indicators of muscle-bone relationship (femur and tibia weight, femur and tibia length and weight of triceps surae muscle) recorded at 150 days of age allowed to corroborate the hypothesis postulated by Hooper, particularly under low body weight conditions in which the biomass sustained does not represent a constraint against the selective pressure exerted to change the length of the bones.