Journal
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-REGULATORY INTEGRATIVE AND COMPARATIVE PHYSIOLOGY
Volume 310, Issue 4, Pages R330-R336Publisher
AMER PHYSIOLOGICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00259.2015
Keywords
basal metabolic rate; cold acclimation; cytochrome-c oxidase; digestive efficiency; state-4 respiration
Categories
Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [31470472]
- Zhejiang Province Natural Science Foundation [LY13C030005]
- National Undergraduate Innovation Project [201410351015]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Cold acclimation in birds involves a comprehensive array of physiological and morphological adjustment ranging from changes in aerobic enzyme activity to metabolic rate and organ mass. In the present study, we investigated phenotypic variation in thermogenic activity in the hwamei (Garrulax canorus) under normal (35 degrees C) or cold (15 degrees C) ambient temperature conditions. Acclimation to an ambient temperature of 15 degrees C for 4 wk significantly increased the body mass, basal metabolic rate (BMR), and energy intake, including both gross energy intake and digestible energy intake, compared with birds kept at 35 degrees C. Furthermore, birds acclimated to 15 degrees C increased the dry mass of their liver and kidneys, but not their heart and pectoral muscles, and displayed higher state-4 respiration in the liver, kidneys, heart, and pectoral muscles, and higher cytochrome-c oxidase (COX) activity in liver, kidney, and pectoral muscle, compared with those kept at 35 degrees C. There was a positive correlation between BMR and state-4 respiration in all of the above organs except the liver, and between BMR and COX activity in all of the above organs. Taken together, these data illustrate the morphological, physiological, and enzymatic changes associated with cold acclimation, and support the notion that the hwamei is a bird species from temperate climates that exhibits high phenotypic flexibility of thermogenic capacity.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available