scholarly journals Reversal of the adipostat control of torpor during migration in hummingbirds

eLife ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erich R Eberts ◽  
Christopher G Guglielmo ◽  
Kenneth C Welch

Many small endotherms use torpor to reduce metabolic rate and manage daily energy balance. However, the physiological 'rules' that govern torpor use are unclear. We tracked torpor use and body composition in ruby-throated hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris), a long-distance migrant, throughout the summer using respirometry and quantitative magnetic resonance. During the mid-summer, birds entered torpor at consistently low fat stores (~5% of body mass), and torpor duration was negatively related to evening fat load. Remarkably, this energy-emergency strategy was abandoned in the late summer when birds accumulated fat for migration. During the migration period, birds were more likely to enter torpor on nights when they had higher fat stores, and fat gain was positively correlated with the amount of torpor used. These findings demonstrate the versatility of torpor throughout the annual cycle and suggest a fundamental change in physiological feedback between adiposity and torpor during migration. Moreover, this study highlights the underappreciated importance of facultative heterothermy in migratory ecology.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erich R Eberts ◽  
Chris Guglielmo ◽  
Kenneth C Welch

Many small endotherms use torpor to reduce metabolic rate and manage daily energy balance. However, the physiological 'rules' that govern torpor use are unclear. We tracked torpor use and body composition in ruby-throated hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris), a long-distance migrant, throughout the summer using respirometry and quantitative magnetic resonance. During the mid-summer, birds entered torpor at consistently low fat stores (~5% of body mass), and torpor duration was negatively related to evening fat load. Remarkably, this energy-emergency strategy was abandoned in the late summer when birds accumulated fat for migration. Migrating birds were more likely to enter torpor on nights when they had higher fat stores, and fat gain was positively correlated with the amount of torpor used. These findings demonstrate the versatility of torpor throughout the annual cycle and suggest a fundamental change in physiological feedback between adiposity and torpor during migration. Moreover, this study highlights the underappreciated importance of facultative heterothermy in migratory ecology.


Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 3758
Author(s):  
Joanna Smarkusz-Zarzecka ◽  
Lucyna Ostrowska ◽  
Joanna Leszczyńska ◽  
Karolina Orywal ◽  
Urszula Cwalina ◽  
...  

Use of probiotic supplements, the benefits of which have not been proven in sportspeople, is becoming more widespread among runners. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a multi-strain probiotic on body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness and inflammation in the body. The randomised, double-blind study included 66 long-distance runners. The intervention factor was a multi-strain probiotic or placebo. At the initial and final stages of the study, evaluation of body composition and cardiorespiratory fitness was performed and the presence of inflammation determined. In the group of men using the probiotic, an increase in lean body mass (p = 0.019) and skeletal muscle mass (p = 0.022) was demonstrated, while in the group of women taking the probiotic, a decrease in the content of total body fat (p = 0.600) and visceral fat (p = 0.247) was observed. Maximum oxygen consumption (VO2max) increased in women (p = 0.140) and men (p = 0.017) using the probiotic. Concentration of tumour necrosis factor-alpha decreased in women (p = 0.003) and men (p = 0.001) using the probiotic and in women (p = 0.074) and men (p = 0.016) using the placebo. Probiotic therapy had a positive effect on selected parameters of body composition and cardiorespiratory fitness of study participants and showed a tendency to reduce inflammation.


Parasitology ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 110 (4) ◽  
pp. 473-482 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. Delahay ◽  
J. R. Speakman ◽  
R. Moss

SUMMARYThe timing of the energetic consequences of a developing, single-dose infection of Trichostrongylus tenuis larvae was investigated in captive red grouse Lagopus lagopus scoticus. At 12 days post-infection (p.i.), infected birds had a resting metabolic rate 16% greater than controls and thenceforth lost weight at a faster rate than controls. At 16 days p.i. infected birds consumed 38% less energy and excreted 33% less energy than controls. The estimated total daily energy expenditure and energy expended on activity for infected birds at 16 days p.i. were 36% and 83% lower, respectively, than for controls. Infected birds lost condition from 16 days p.i. onwards. The period of energy imbalance at 12–16 days p.i. coincided with development of late 4th-stage larvae into adult worms and the onset of patency. After this, the effects on energy balance diminished. Synchronous development of previously arrested T. tenuis larvae in wild birds in spring probably has similar effects to those reported here and places grouse under conditions of energy imbalance. The observed effects on energy balance provide a possible mechanism by which the parasite can reduce fecundity and survival of infected grouse.


Author(s):  
Juan M Fernández-Alvira ◽  
Saskia J te Velde ◽  
Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij ◽  
Elling Bere ◽  
Yannis Manios ◽  
...  

Hypertension ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 78 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Darren Mehay ◽  
Sarah Bingaman ◽  
Yuval Silberman ◽  
Amy Arnold

Angiotensin (Ang)-(1-7) is a protective hormone of the renin-angiotensin system that improves insulin sensitivity, glucose tolerance, and energy balance in obese rodents. Our recent findings suggest that Ang-(1-7) activates mas receptors (MasR) in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus (ARC), a brain region critical to control of energy balance and glucose homeostasis, to induce these positive metabolic effects. The distribution of MasR in the ARC and their role in metabolic regulation, however, is unknown. We hypothesized: (1) MasR are expressed in the ARC; and (2) deletion of ARC MasR leads to worsened metabolic outcomes following high fat diet (HFD). To test this, male and female C57Bl/6J mice were fed a 60% HFD or matched control diet ad libitum for 12 weeks. RNAscope in situ hybridization was performed on coronal ARC sections in rostral-middle-caudal regions to determine percentage of MasR positive neurons (n=5/group). In a second experiment, we assessed body composition and insulin and glucose tolerance in transgenic mice with deletion of MasR in ARC neurons (MasR-flox with AAV5-hsyn-GFP-Cre). RNAscope revealed a wide distribution on MasR-positive cells throughout the rostral to caudal extent of the ARC. The average percentage of MasR positive neurons was increased in females versus males, with HFD tending to increase MasR expression in both sexes (control diet male: 11±2; control diet female: 17±3; HFD male: 15±5; HFD female: 24±2; p sex : 0.030; p diet : 0.066; p int : 0.615; two-way ANOVA). Deletion of MasR in ARC neurons worsened insulin sensitivity in HFD but not control diet females (area under the curve for change in glucose from baseline: -1989±1359 HFD control virus vs. 2530±1762 HFD Cre virus; p=0.016), while fasting glucose, glucose tolerance, and body composition did not change. There was no effect of ARC MasR deletion on metabolic outcomes in control diet or HFD male mice. These findings suggest females have more MasR positive neurons in the ARC compared to males, which may be a sex-specific protective mechanism for glucose homeostasis. While further studies are needed to explore the role of ARC MasR in metabolic regulation, these findings support targeting Ang-(1-7) as an innovative strategy in obesity.


2005 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 607-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Roberts ◽  
P. Rosier ◽  
D. M. Smith

Abstract. The impact on recharge to the Chalk aquifer of substitution of broadleaved woodland for pasture is a matter of concern in the UK. Hence, measurements of energy balance components were made above beech woodland and above pasture, both growing on shallow soils over chalk in Hampshire. Latent heat flux (evaporation) was calculated as the residual from these measurements of energy balances in which sensible heat flux was measured with an eddy correlation instrument that determined fast response vertical wind speeds and associated temperature changes. Assessment of wind turbulence statistics confirmed that the eddy correlation device performed satisfactorily in both wet and dry conditions. There was excellent agreement between forest transpiration measurements made by eddy correlation and stand level tree transpiration measured with sap flow devices. Over the period of the measurements, from March 1999 to late summer 2000, changes in soil water content were small and grassland evaporation and transpiration estimated from energy balance-eddy flux measurements were in excellent agreement with Penman estimates of potential evaporation. Over the 18-month measurement period, the cumulative difference between broadleaved woodland and grassland was small but evaporation from the grassland was 3% higher than that from the woodland. In the springs of 1999 and 2000, evaporation from the grassland was greater than that from the woodland. However, following leaf emergence in the woodland, the difference in cumulative evaporation diminished until the following spring.


1986 ◽  
Vol 116 (8) ◽  
pp. 1519-1528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean B. Taylor ◽  
C. Chris Calvert ◽  
R. Lee Baldwin ◽  
Roberto D. Sainz

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document