Abstract
Common tenrecs, Tenrec ecaudatus, are medium‐sized mammalian tropical hibernators endemic to Madagascar. Tenrecs are capable of effectively hibernating at temperatures between 12 and 28°C and do not undergo periodic arousals during hibernation, a feature common to all other known hibernators. Interestingly, these tenrecs can also experience spontaneous bouts of torpor during the active season known as facultative torpor (FT). During hibernation and FT, oxygen consumption rates are 1.1–14% of active rates depending on ambient temperature. We have observed marked variation in hematocrit (between 15 and 50%). We asked what happens to hemoglobin concentration and type across the annual cycle and state. A colorimetric assay was performed for hemoglobin concentration in whole blood. Isoelectric focusing was used to assay for changes in hemoglobin type (e.g. fetal vs adult types) across the physiological states. These data will serve as an initial step in helping to determine how tenrecs are able to achieve low metabolic rates without concomitant decreases in body temperature.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.
Published Version
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