This study had two purposes: 1) to determine the effects of varying the pH of lactic acid infusion solutions on the acid-base status of anesthetized dogs, and 2) to determine the effect of elevated blood lactate concentration on muscle lactate concentration. The experiments were performed on the in situ gastro cnemius-plantaris muscle group in 14 mongrel dogs. The infusions increased the arterial blood lactate concentration to 11.0 +/- 0.5 (SE) mM after 20 min. Above an infusate pH of 4.4, the arterial pH increased by 0.118-0.167 during infusion; the arterial pH was unchanged when the infusate pH was between 3.4 and 4.0; and the arterial pH decreased as infusate pH decreased below 3.0. The effect of lactic acid infusion on blood pH appears to be the result of two opposing effects: 1) an acidifying effect due to its weak acid properties, and 2) an alkalinizing effect due to the metabolism of sodium lactate. The estimated ratio between intracellular muscle lactate and venous plasma water lactate averaged 0.647 +/- 0.038, indicative of a substantial gradient between blood and muscle. The infusion produced a significant change from lactate output to lactate uptake by the muscles. The infusion also transiently increased muscle blood flow and oxygen uptake.