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Body and brain temperature coupling: the critical role of cerebral blood flow

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Abstract

Direct measurements of deep-brain and body-core temperature were performed on rats to determine the influence of cerebral blood flow (CBF) on brain temperature regulation under static and dynamic conditions. Static changes of CBF were achieved using different anesthetics (chloral hydrate, CH; α-chloralose, αCS; and isoflurane, IF) with αCS causing larger decreases in CBF than CH and IF; dynamic changes were achieved by inducing transient hypercapnia (5% CO2 in 40% O2 and 55% N2). Initial deep-brain/body-core temperature differentials were anesthetic-type dependent with the largest differential observed with rats under αCS anesthesia (ca. 2°C). Hypercapnia induction raised rat brain temperature under all three anesthesia regimes, but by different anesthetic-dependent amounts correlated with the initial differentials—αCS anesthesia resulted in the largest brain temperature increase (0.32 ± 0.08°C), while CH and IF anesthesia lead to smaller increases (0.12 ± 0.03 and 0.16 ± 0.05°C, respectively). The characteristic temperature transition time for the hypercapnia-induced temperature increase was 2–3 min under CH and IF anesthesia and ~4 min under αCS anesthesia. We conclude that both, the deep-brain/body-core temperature differential and the characteristic temperature transition time correlate with CBF: a lower CBF promotes higher deep-brain/body-core temperature differentials and, upon hypercapnia challenge, longer characteristic transition times to increased temperatures.

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Abbreviations

OEF:

Oxygen extraction fraction

CBF:

Cerebral blood flow

CH:

Chloral hydrate

IF:

Isoflurane

αCS:

α-Chloralose

MABP:

Mean arterial blood pressure

FiO2 :

Fraction of inspired oxygen

CMRO2 :

Cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Dr. Sukstanskii for helpful discussion. This study was supported by NIH Grants RO1-NS41519 and R24-CA83060 (Small Animal Imaging Resource Program)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Washington University, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    Mingming Zhu, Joseph J. H. Ackerman & Dmitriy A. Yablonskiy

  2. Department of Chemistry, Washington University, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    Mingming Zhu & Joseph J. H. Ackerman

  3. Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    Joseph J. H. Ackerman

  4. Department of Physics, Washington University, One Brookings Drive, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA

    Dmitriy A. Yablonskiy

  5. Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, Campus Box 8227, 660 South Euclid, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA

    Mingming Zhu

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  1. Mingming Zhu
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  2. Joseph J. H. Ackerman
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Correspondence to Mingming Zhu.

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Communicated by H. V. Carey.

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Zhu, M., Ackerman, J.J.H. & Yablonskiy, D.A. Body and brain temperature coupling: the critical role of cerebral blood flow. J Comp Physiol B 179, 701–710 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00360-009-0352-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00360-009-0352-6

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