|
Vol. 52, 2013
Effects of photoperiod and temperature on the body mass,
thermogenesis, and serum leptin levels of Apodemus draco (Rodentia: Muridae) in the
Hengduan Mountain region, China
Wan-Long
Zhu1,2*, Guang Yang2, Lin Zhang1 and
Zheng-Kun Wang1
1School
of Life Science, Yunnan Normal University, Kunming 650500, China
2College of Life Science, Nanjing Normal University,
Nanjing 210023, China
Abstract
Background: Environmental cues play
important roles in the regulation of physiology and behavior in small
mammals. In the present study, we performed a factorial experiment
(temperature × photoperiod) in which the South China field mouse Apodemus draco (Rodentia: Muridae) was
acclimated to different photoperiods (a long photoperiod of 16 h
light/8 h dark and a short photoperiod of 8 h light/16 h dark) and
temperatures (warm at 30°C and cold at 5°C) to test the hypothesis that
photoperiod, temperature, or both together can trigger changes in
serum leptin levels, body mass, thermogenesis, and energy intake.
Results: Body mass, the resting metabolic rate
(RMR), nonshivering thermogenesis (NST), and energy intake
significantly decreased in the cold condition. Cold exposure induced
increases in mitochondrial protein contents, cytochrome C oxidase (COX)
activity, and α-glycerophosphate oxidase (α-GPO) in the liver and brown
adipose tissue (BAT). There were no significant differences in
mitochondrial protein contents, COX, or α-GPO under different
photoperiods. Cold also induced an increase in uncoupling protein 1 in
the BAT but showed no significant differences with photoperiod.
Conclusions: All of the results
indicated that A. draco was
more sensitive to temperature. Further, serum leptin levels were
involved in the processes of thermogenesis and body mass regulation in A. draco.
Key words: Apodemus draco; Photoperiod; Temperature;
Serum leptin levels; Uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1).
*Correspondence: E-mail: zwl_8307@163.com
|
