ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I would like to thank my parents for their love and support, especially within my

last three months of graduate studies. Without them, this day would not have been

possible. I would also like to thank my entire family (Perkins, Hunter, Swann, and Helmy)

for the good times in my life. And a very special thanks to Pedro M. Swann, Jr. for not

allowing me to give up when the chips were down.

Special thanks to Jay H. Williams, PhD, for inviting me to join his muscle function

laboratory and for being a great listener. Also, sincere thanks to Christopher Ward, PhD

for his friendship, laboratory guidance and advice. I would like to thank Jay and Chris

both for their patience and time.

Finally, I would like to thank the HNFE secretaries, Sherry Terry, Mary Taylor,

and Sherry Saville, for all of their help in getting me where I needed to be or for some

great laughs.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iv
LIST OF TABLES vii

I. INTRODUCTION 1
Introduction 2
Statement of the Problem 5
Significance of the Study 6
Research hypothesis 6
Delimitations 6
Limitations 7
Basic Assumptions 7
Definitions and Symbols 7
Summary 8

II. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE 9

Introduction 10
Muscle mass and strength/force production 10
Fiber loss and Injury 13
Free Radicals Effect 14

III. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS 16

IV. RESULTS 21
Morphological Data 22
SR Function-Ca2+ Uptake 22
SR Function-Ca2+ Release 22

V. DISCUSSION 27
Summary 28
General Discussion 28
Conclusions 30
Suggestions for Further Research 31

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REFERENCES 32

APPENDIX A. RAW DATA 39

VITA 45

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 LIST OF TABLES

Table Page

1. Muscle Masses and Protein Content 24

2. Effect of HOCl on Ca2+ Uptake 25

3. Effect of AgNO3 & H2O2 on Ca2+ Release 26

Appendix Table

1. Raw data Ca2+ uptake and release measurements in adult rats. 40

2. Raw data Ca2+ uptake and release measurements in aged rats. 42

3. Reduced data for Ca2+ uptake and release measurements. 44

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