Abstract
Rats and mice were exposed for periods of up to six months and two successive generations of mice were raised in a ground-level chamber system filled with 80% helium −20% oxygen, at 24°C. A duplicate chamber for controls contained a comparable nitrogen-oxygen mixture, and in both the other environmental parameters were well-controlled and nearly identical. Animals adapted to helium showed no greater increase in oxygen consumption (P>0.05) when placed in helium-oxygen than did those raised in air. Growth rates were identical, but the helium mice consumed more food and water.
Selected biochemical analyses were made on the parent and two successive generations of mice. These included blood indices; electrophoretically separated tissue protein patterns from liver, skeletal muscle, and cardiac muscle; quantitative determinations of LDH, MDH, and G6PDH from the same tissues; serum insulin; and semi-quantitative histochemical estimates of liver glycogen. No cases of statistically significant difference or consistent trends were seen between the experimental environmental groups. Additional analyses of liver nucleotides and redox-coenzymes also failed to show a significant difference.
The relative weights of liver, heart, kidney, and diaphragm (wet and dry) were the same in both groups. Histopathological examination of kidney and adrenal tissue produced unremarkable findings and none that were attributable to the nature of the gaseous environment.
It must be concluded that prolonged exposure to helium-oxygen, relative to air, does not produce detectable changes in several key subcellular factors which might be altered by serious metabolic disturbances, and therefore the helium exposure is well tolerated.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allen, L. C.: 1965 ‘The Formation of Noble Gas Compounds’Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 118, 883–98.
Bennett, P. B.: 1966,The Aetiology of Compressed Air Intoxication and Inert Gas Narcosis, Pergamon Press, London.
Bergmeyer H. V. and Bernt, E.: 1963, ‘Malic Dehydrogenase’, inMethods of Enzymatic Analysis (ed. by H. V. Bergmeyer) Academic Press, New York.
Bonura, M. S. and Nelson, W. G.,et al.: 1967, Engineering Criteria for Spacecraft Cabin Atmosphere Selection, NASA CR-891.
Brooksby, G. A., Dennis, R. L., and Staley, R. W.: 1966, ‘Effect of Continuous Exposure of Rats to 100% Oxygen at 450 mm Hg for 64 Days’,Aerospace Med. 37, 243–46.
Bruemmer, J. H., Brunetti, B. B., and Schreiner, H. R.: 1967, ‘Effects of Helium Group Gases and Nitrous Oxide on HeLa Cells’,J. Cell. Physiol. 69, 385–92.
Bücher, T. and Klingenberg, M.: 1958,Angew. Chem. 70, 552.
Consolazio, C. F., Johnson, R. E., and Pecora, L. J.: 1963,Physiological Measurements of Metabolic Function in Man, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Cook, S. F.: 1950, ‘The Effect of Helium and Argon on Metabolism and Metamorphosis’,J. Cellular Comp. Physiol. 36, 115–27.
Cook, S. F. and Leon, H. A.: 1959, Physiological Effects of Inert Gases, AFMDC TR-59-26, Holloman AFB, Air Force Missile Development Center, New Mexico, U.S.A.
Cook, S. F., South, F. E., and Young, D. R.: 1951, ‘Effect of Helium on Gas Exchange in Mice’,Am. J. Physiol. 164, 248–50.
Delbrück, A., Zebe, E., and Bücher, T.: 1959, ‘The Activity of Enzymes of the Energy-Producing Metabolism in Flight Muscle, Jumping Muscle and Fat Body ofLocusta migratoria, and Their Cytological Distribution’,Biochem. Z. 331, 273–96.
Dixon, M. and Webb, E. C.: 1964,Enzymes, Academic Press, New York.
Epperson, W. L., Quigley, D. G., Robertson, W. G., Behar, V. S., and Welch, B. E.: 1966, ‘Observations on Man in an Oxygen-Helium Environment at 380 mm Hg Total Pressure. III. Heat Exchange’,Aerospace Med. 37, 457–62.
Estabrook, R. W.: 1965, ‘Discussion’ inControl of Energy Metabolism (ed. by B. Chance, R. W. Estabrook, and J. R. Williamson), Academic Press, New York.
Featherstone R. M. and Muehlbaecher, C. A.: 1963, ‘The Current Role of Inert Gases in the Search for Anesthesia Mechanisms’,Pharmacol. Rev. 15, 97–121.
Frenkel, R.: 1965, ‘Enzyme Profile of Beef Heart Supernatant Fraction’, inControl of Energy Metabolism (ed. by B. Chance, R. W. Estabrook, and J. R. Williamson), Academic Press, New York.
Guilford, J. P.: 1965,Fundamental Statistics in Psychology and Education, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Glock, G. E., and McLean, P.: 1954, ‘Levels of Enzymes of the Direct Oxidative Pathway of Carbonhydrate Metabolism in Mammalian Tissues and Tumors’,Biochem. J. 56, 171–75.
Green, D. E.: 1936, ‘The Malic Dehydrogenase of Animal Tissues’,Biochem. J. 30, 2095–2110.
Hamilton, R. W., Jr., Doebbler, G. F., Nuermberger, C. H., and Schreiner H. R.: 1966a, ‘Biological Effects of Space Cabin Atmospheres: Exposure of Rabbits to Helium, Neon, Nitrogen, Argon and Oxygen’,Physiologist,9, 197.
Hamilton, R. W. Jr., Doebbler, G. F., Nuermberger, C. H., and Schreiner, H. R.: 1966b, Biological Evaluation of Various Space Cabin Atmospheres, Final Report to USAF School of Aerospace Medicine. Contract AF41(609)-2711, Union Carbide Corporation, Tonawanda, N.Y.
Hamilton, R. W., Jr., MacInnis, B. J., Trovato, L. A., and Schreiner, H. R.: 1966c, ‘Biological Effects of Helium on Man: Results of a Multi-Day Exposure to This Gas at 20 Atmospheres. II. Physiological Evaluation’,Aerospace Med. 37, 281–82.
Hamilton, R. W., Jr. and Schreiner, H. R.: 1967, ‘Effect of Helium, Neon, Nitrogen, and Argon on the Relative Susceptibility of Animals to Altitude Decompression Sickness’, presented at the 38th Annual Meeting of the Aerospace Medical Association, Washington, D.C. April 10–13, 1967.
Hamilton, R. W., Jr., Cohen, J. D., Doebbler, G. F., Exposito, L. F., King, J. M., and Schreiner, H. R.: 1969, Biochemical and Metabolic Effects of a Six-Month Exposure of Small Animals to a Helium-Oxygen Atmosphere, NASA CR-1372.
Hargreaves, J. J., Robertson, W. G., Ulvedal, F., Zeft, H. J., and Welch, B. E.: 1966, ‘Study of Man During a 56-Day Exposure to an Oxygen-Helium Atmosphere at 258 mm Total Pressure. I. Introduction and General Experimental Design’,Aerospace Med. 37, 552–55.
Hartshorne, D. J. and Perry, S. V.: 1962, ‘A Chromatographic and Electrophoretic Study of Sarcoplasm From Adult- and Foetal-Rabbit Muscles’,Biochem. J. 85, 171–77.
Helvey, W. M., Albright, G. A., Benjamin, F. B., Gall, L. S., Peters, J. M., and Rind, H.: 1965, ‘Effects of Prolonged Exposure to Pure Oxygen on Human Performance’, inGaseous Environmental Considerations and Evaluation Programs Leading to Spacecraft Atmosphere Selection (ed. by E. L. Michel, G. B. Smith, and R. S. Johnston) TND-2506, NASA, Washington, D. C.
Hess, B. and Brand, K.: 1965, ‘Enzyme and Metabolic Profiles’, inControl of Energy Metabolism (ed. by B. Chance, R. W. Estabrook, and J. R. Williamson), Academic Press, New York.
Higgins, J.: 1965, ‘Dynamics and Control in Cellular Reactions’, inControl of Energy Metabolism (ed. by B. Chance, R. W. Estabrook, and J. R. Williamson), Academic Press, New York.
Kissane, J. Q.: 1967, Study of the Effects of a Helium-Oxygen Atmosphere on Nucleotide Cofactors of Cellular Oxidative Systems, Report No. IITI-L6045-1 to the Natl. Aeron. Space Admin., IIT Research Institute, Chicago.
Lauryssens, M. G. and Lauryssens, M. J.: 1964, ‘Electrophoretic Distribution Pattern of Lactate Dehydrogenase in Mouse and Human Muscular Dystrophy’,Clin. Chim. Acta 9, 273–76.
Leon, H. A. and Cook, S. F.: 1960, ‘A Mechanism by Which Helium Increases Metabolism in Small Mammals’,Am. J. Physiol. 199, 243–45.
Lillie, R. D.: 1954,Histopathic Technic and Practical Histochemistry, McGraw-Hill, New York.
Löhr, G. W. and Waller, H. D.: 1963, Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase inMethods of Enzymatic Analysis (ed. by H. V. Bergmeyer), Academic Press, New York.
Maio, D. A. and Neville, J. R.: 1966, The Effect of Chemically Inert Gases on Oxygen Consumption in Living Tissues, SAM-TR-66-109, Brooks AFB, USAF School of Aerospace Medicine, Texas, U.S.A.
Meister, A.: 1950, ‘Lactic Dehydrogenase Activity of Certain Tumors and Normal Tissues’,J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 10, 1263–71.
Prosser, C. L. and Brown, Jr., F. A.: 1963,Comparative Animal Physiology W. B. Saunders Co., Philadelphia.
Rendon, L.: 1965, Electrophoretic Separations on Acrylamide Gels: Disc. Electrophoresis, AMRL-TR-65-202, Wright-Patterson AFB, Aerospace Med. Res. Lab., Ohio.
Rhoades, R. A., Wright, R. A., and Weiss, H. S.: 1966, ‘Metabolic Depression in Animals Exposed to Air After Living in a Helium-Oxygen Environment’,Proc. Soc. Explt. Biol. Med. 124, 176–80.
Richards, D. W.: 1965, ‘Pulmonary Changes Due to Aging’, inHandbook of Physiology. II. Respiration (ed. by W. O. Fenn and H. Rahn), Am Physiol. Society, Washington.
Rinfret, A. P. and Doebbler, G. F.: 1961, ‘Physiological and Biochemical Effects and Applications’, inArgon, Helium and the Rare Gases, (ed. by G. A. Cook). Interscience, New York.
Rodgers, S. H.: 1966, The Oxygen Consumption of Rat Tissues in the Presence of Nitrogen, Helium or Hydrogen, Ph.D. Thesis, The University of Rochester, New York.
Roth, E. M.: 1964, Space Cabin Atmospheres. II. Fire and Blast Hazards, Report SP-48, NASA, Washington, D. C.
Roth, E. M.: 1965 Space Cabin Atmospheres. III. Physiological Factors of Inert Gases, Report SP-117, NASA, Washington, D.C.
Schmidt, E. and Schmidt, F. W.: 1960, ‘Enzyme Patterns of Human Tissues’,Klin. Wschr. 957–62.
Schreiner, H. R.: 1964, The Physiological Effects of Argon, Helium and the Rare Gases, Technical Report I to the Office of Naval Research. Contract Nonrr-4115(00), Union Carbide Corp., Tonawanda, New York.
Schreiner, H. R.: 1966, ‘Interaction of Inert Gases With Molecular Cell Processes’,Biometerol. 2, 339–49.
Schreiner, H. R., Bruemmer, J. H., and Doebbler, G. F.: 1965, The Physiological Effects of Argon, Helium and the Rare Gases. Technical Report II to the Office of Naval Research, Contract Nonr-4115(00), Union Carbide Corp., Tonawanda, New York.
Schreiner, H. R., Gregoire, R. C., and Lawrie, J. A.: 1962, ‘New Biological Effect of the Gases of the Helium Group’,Science 136, 653–54.
South, F. E. and Cook, S. F.: 1953, ‘Effect of Helium on the Respiration and Glycolysis of Mouse Liver Slices’,J. Gen. Physiol. 36, 513–28.
Stengel, A. and Fox H.: 1915,A Textbook of Pathology, Saunders, Philadelphia.
Swisher, S. N. and Fisher, C. L.: 1966, ‘Hematological Changes in Space Flight’,Physiologist 9, 328.
Tepperman, J. and Tepperman H. M.: 1965, ‘On the “Biochemical Imprinting” of Metabolic Experience in Liver Cells’, inControl of Energy Metabolism (ed. by B. Chance, R. W. Estabrook, and J. R. Williamson), Academic Press, New York.
Weiss, H. S. and Rhoades, R. A.: 1965, Biological Effects of Prolonged Exposure of Small Animals to Unusual Gaseous Environments, Report 1492-5, NASA, Ohio State Univ. Res. Fdn., Columbus.
Wroblewski, F.: 1957, ‘The Clinical Significance of Lactic Dehydrogenase Activity in the Milieu Interieur’,Scand. J. Clin. Lab. Invest. 10, 230–53.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Prepared under Contract No. NAS 2-3900 for Union Carbide Corporation, Linde Division Research Laboratory, Tonawanda, N.Y. for Ames Research Center.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hamilton, R.W., Cohen, J.D., Doebbler, G.F. et al. Biochemical and metabolic effects of a six-month exposure of small animals to a helium-oxygen atmosphere. Space Life Sciences 2, 57–99 (1970). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00928956
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00928956