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Metabolic Efficiency (metabolic + efficiency)
Selected AbstractsEffect of mercury and Gpi-2 genotype on standard metabolic rate of eastern mosquitofish (Gambusia holbrooki),ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY & CHEMISTRY, Issue 4 2001Christopher Paul Tatara Abstract Previous studies demonstrated differential mortality among mosquitofish of different Gpi-2 genotypes during acute mercury and arsenate exposures. Mercury-exposed mosquitofish also had Gpi-2 genotype-specific differences in glycolytic and Krebs cycle metabolite pools. The mortality and metabolite data suggested that mosquitofish bearing specific Gpi-2 genotypes might differ in metabolic efficiency, with less efficient Gpi-2 genotypes having higher standard metabolic rates (SMRs) and shorter times to death during acute mercury exposure. Effect of Gpi-2 genotype on SMR was assessed with a factorial arrangement of six Gpi-2 genotypes and two exposure sequences (Control , Control; Control , 100 ,g/L Hg). The SMRs were estimated by measuring oxygen consumption using an indirect, closed-circuit, computer-controlled respirometer. A 48-h exposure to 100 ,g/L of mercury resulted in a 16.7% elevation of SMR above control levels (p = 0.001). The Gpi-2 genotype and the number of heterozygous loci per individual had no significant effect on SMR in mercury-exposed mosquitofish. The experimental results do not support the hypothesis that Gpi-2 genotype-specific differences in glycolytic and Krebs cycle metabolite pools and mortality in mosquitofish exposed to mercury are associated with differences in SMR. [source] Nitric oxide synthase inhibition reduces O2 cost of force development and spares high-energy phosphates following contractions in pump-perfused rat hindlimb musclesEXPERIMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 3 2006David J. Baker The purpose of the present experiments was to test the hypotheses that: (i) nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibition reduces the O2 cost of force development across a range of contractile demands; and (ii) this reduced O2 cost of force development would be reflected in a sparing of intramuscular higher energy phosphates. Rat distal hindlimb muscles were pump perfused in situ and electrically stimulated (200 ms trains with pulses at 100 Hz, each pulse 0.05 ms duration) for 1 min each at 15, 30 and 60 tetani min,1 and for 2 min at 90 tetani min,1 in three groups: 0.01 mm adenosine; 1 mm d -NAME and 0.01 mm adenosine (d -NAME); and 1 mm l -NAME and 0.01 mm adenosine (l -NAME). The gastrocnemius,plantaris,soleus muscle group was freeze clamped post-contractions for metabolite analyses. Force was 19% higher and oxygen uptake was 20% lower with l -NAME versus adenosine, and there was a 35% reduction in /time-integrated tension versus adenosine and 24% versusd -NAME that was independent of contraction frequency. l -NAME treatment produced a 33% sparing of muscle phosphocreatine (PCr), and intramuscular lactate was no different between groups. In contrast, d -NAME reduced force by 30%, by 29% and the O2 cost of force development by 15% compared with adenosine, but had no effect on the degree of intramuscular ATP and PCr depletion. These results show that NOS inhibition improved the metabolic efficiency of force development, either by improving the ATP yield for a given O2 consumption or by reducing the ATP cost of force development. In addition, these effects were independent of contraction frequency. [source] Gene,environment interactions and the response to exerciseINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL PATHOLOGY, Issue 5 2000Hugh Montgomery Many of the symptoms of heart failure (breathlessness and fatigue) are not primarily due to reduced cardiac output, but relate to an impairment of peripheral muscle performance and metabolic efficiency. With regular training it is possible to increase skeletal muscle performance through improvements in muscle efficiency. Recent data suggest that such improvements may be modulated by local tissue renin-angiotensin systems and, in particular, by the local activity of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE). These findings might explain the remarkable benefits of ACE inhibition in the treatment of heart failure. [source] Dental plaque: biological significance of a biofilm and community life-styleJOURNAL OF CLINICAL PERIODONTOLOGY, Issue 2005P. D. Marsh Abstract Background: Most microorganisms in nature attach to surfaces and form matrix-embedded biofilms. Biofilms are highly structured and spatially organized, and are often composed of consortia of interacting microorganisms, termed microbial communities, the properties of which are more than the sum of the component species. Microbial gene expression alters markedly in biofilms; organisms communicate by gene transfer and by secretion of diffusible signalling molecules. Cells in biofilms are less susceptible to antimicrobial agents. Aim and Materials & Methods: To comprehensively review the literature to determine whether dental plaque displays properties consistent with those of a typical biofilm and microbial community. Results: Novel microscopic and molecular techniques have demonstrated that plaque has a structured architecture with an extracellular matrix, and a diverse composition (around 50% of cells are unculturable). The constituent species communicate by gene transfer, by secreted peptides (Gram-positive bacteria) and autoinducer-2 (Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria). These organisms are functionally organized for increased metabolic efficiency, greater resistance to stress and for enhanced virulence. Plaque formation has direct and indirect effects on gene expression. Conclusion: Dental plaque displays properties that are typical of biofilms and microbial communities in general, a clinical consequence of which is a reduced susceptibility to antimicrobial agents as well as pathogenic synergism. [source] Paradoxical Sleep Deprivation and Sleep Recovery: Effects on the Hypothalamic,Pituitary,Adrenal Axis Activity, Energy Balance and Body Composition of RatsJOURNAL OF NEUROENDOCRINOLOGY, Issue 4 2006D. C. Hipólide Abstract Numerous studies indicate that sleep deprivation alters energy expenditure. However, this conclusion is drawn from indirect measurements. In the present study, we investigated alterations of energy expenditure, body composition, blood glucose levels, plasma insulin, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and corticosterone levels immediately after 4 days of sleep deprivation or after 4 days of sleep recovery. Rats were sleep deprived or maintained in a control environment (groups sleep-deprived/deprivation and control/deprivation). One half of these animals were sacrificed at the end of the deprivation period and the other half was transported to metabolic cages, where they were allowed to sleep freely (groups sleep-deprived/recovery and control/recovery). At the end of the sleep recovery period, these rats were sacrificed. After sleep deprivation, sleep-deprived rats exhibited loss of body weight, augmented energy expenditure and reduced metabolic efficiency compared to control rats. These alterations were normalised during the sleep recovery period. The body composition of sleep-deprived rats was altered insofar as there was a loss of fat content and gain of protein content in the carcass compared to control rats. However, these alterations were not reversed by sleep recovery. Finally, plasma levels of insulin were reduced during the sleep deprivation period in both control and sleep deprived groups compared to the recovery period. After the deprivation period, plasma ACTH and corticosterone levels were increased in sleep-deprived rats compared to control rats, and although ACTH levels were similar between the groups after the sleep recovery period, corticosterone levels remained elevated in sleep-deprived rats after this period. By means of direct measurements of metabolism, our results showed that sleep deprivation produces increased energy expenditure and loss of fat content. Most of the alterations were reversed by sleep recovery, except for corticosterone levels and body composition. [source] Comparative and evolutionary dimensions of the energetics of human pregnancy and lactationAMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2002D.L. Dufour The purpose of this article is to compare the energetics of reproduction for human and other primates in order to evaluate the extent to which human reproductive energetics are distinct from other primates and other large-bodied placental mammals. The article also evaluates the energetics of human and primate gestation and lactation using data from a variety of different populations living under different environmental circumstances. Energetics refers to energy intake and expenditure, and changes in body fat stores. Human and nonhuman primates have longer periods of gestation and lactation and slower prenatal and postnatal growth than other mammals of similar size. This reduces daily maternal energy costs. The development of sizable fat stores is not unique to humans, but fat stores are typically greater in human females and may play a greater role in reproduction. The strategies used to meet the energy costs of pregnancy vary among populations of humans and nonhuman primates and among humans interindividual variability is high. In pregnancy, some increase energy intake but others apparently do not. Increases in metabolic efficiency are evident in some human populations, whereas decreases in physical activity occur, but are not seen in all human or primate populations. Lactation is more energetically costly on a daily basis among humans and nonhuman primates, but has not been as well studied. It appears that both nonhuman and human primates tend to increase energy intake to meet in part the cost of lactation. They also use other strategies such as relying on body tissue stores, reductions in physical activity, and/or increases in metabolic efficiency to meet the remainder of the cost. It is also clear that human females in different populations and different women in the same population use a different combination of strategies to meet the cost of lactation. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 14:584,602, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Evolutionary history of the bank vole Myodes glareolus: a morphometric perspectiveBIOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY, Issue 3 2010RONAN LEDEVIN The bank vole experienced a complex history during the Quaternary. Repeated isolation in glacial refugia led to the differentiation of several lineages in less than 300 000 years. We investigated if such a recent differentiation led to a significant divergence of phenotypic characters between European lineages, which might provide insight into processes of intraspecific differentiation. The size and shape of the first and third upper molars, and first lower molar, of bank voles genetically attributed to different lineages were quantified using an outline analysis of their occlusal surface. The three teeth present similar trends of decreasing size towards high latitudes. This trend, the inverse of Bergmann's rule, is interpreted as the result of a balance between metabolic efficiency and food availability, favouring small body size in cold regions. Molar shape appeared to differ between lineages despite genetic evidence of suture zones. A mosaic pattern of evolution between the different teeth was evidenced. The analysis of such phenotypic features appears as a valuable complement to genetic analyses, providing a complementary insight into evolutionary processes, such as selective pressures, that have driven the differentiation of the lineages. It may further allow the integration of the paleontological dimension of the bank vole phylogeographic history. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010, 100, 681,694. [source] | |||||||||||||