Thermoregulatory Effects of Atropine in the Cold using a Hypotrichotic Rat Model.
Abstract
The objectives of this research were to determine the effects of atropine on shivering and peripheral-vasodilation in the cold, with attendant effects on thermoregulation. A conscious, confined but unrestrained, hypotrichotic (Wistar-Furth, fuzzy) rat model was used. Electromyography (EMG) was utilized to assess the shivering response of the trapezius muscle. An EMG frequency band between 3 Hz and 1 kHz was rectified, then integrated for determination of a shivering index. Infrared thermography was used to monitor dorsal body skin temperature as an indirect assessment of cutaneous blood flow. Rats were injected in the lumbar musculature with either 1 mg/kg atropine (A) or an equivalent volume (0.15 ml) of saline (S) 30 minutes after exposure to one of three ambient temperatures (25 deg C, 18 deg C or 12 deg C) Data were then collected for an additional 90 minutes.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 13, 1993
- Accession Number
- ADP008814
Entities
People
- Brian J. Gentile
- Craig R. Johnson
- Ralph P. Francesconi
- Roger W. Hubbard
Organizations
- United States Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense