Research Summary
Using a Comparative Physiological approach, we study animals that have naturally evolved physiological
defence mechanisms for coping with hypoxia. We are also interested in understanding how animals
utilise temperature to alter their
metabolic needs. It is well known that in the
cold,
metabolic processes slow down which allows hibernating animals to survive long winters without food.
All animals require oxygen to maintain
aerobic metabolism and ultimately to survive. Nonetheless, there are many situations such as intertidal zones, ice-covered lakes, high altitude, and underground burrows, where oxygen can be limiting. This is referred to as hypoxia. Animals possess numerous adaptations for coping with these kinds of environmental stresses.
One goal of our research program is to understand how animals control their
metabolism and body temperature during times when a high
metabolic rate or high body temperature are impossible or inefficient to
sustain, such as seen during hypoxia,
hypothermia, hibernation, torpor or
sleep.
When faced with hypoxia animals actually prefer lower body temperatures and
metabolism, implying a
neural mechanism to this process. In other words, the brain's thermostat is lowered in hypoxia. Understanding this process will shed light on how animals modify and manipulate body temperature and
metabolism and improve our understanding of how the body maintains
thermal homeostasis.
