Prolonged residence of temperate natives in the tropics produces a suppression of sweating

Abstract

Tropical natives possess heat tolerance due to the ability to off-load endogenous and exogenous heat efficiently using a minimum amount of sweat. On the other hand, exposure of temperate natives to heat results in exaggerated production of sweat, of which part is lost by dripping and, thus, not available for evaporation. How sweating is modified in natives of temperate climate zones by prolonged residence in the tropics is not well-understood. The aim of this study was to investigate possible changes in the peripheral sweating mechanisms. Sweating responses to iontophoretically applied acetylcholine (ACh) were compared between Japanese subjects having either permanently resided in Japan (Japan resident Japanese, JRJ) or having stayed in the tropics for 2 years or longer (Tropics resident Japanese, TRJ). Quantitative sudomotor axon reflex tests by iontophoresis of ACh (10%, 2 mA for 5 min) were applied to determine directly activated (DIR) and axon reflex-mediated sweating during [AXR(1)] and after [AXR(2)] ACh iontophoresis. The sweat onset time of AXR(1) was 0.6 min shorter in JRJ than in TRJ (P<0.0001), and AXR(1) (P<0.0004), AXR(2) (P<0.0001), and DIR (P<0.0001) sweating responses were larger in JRJ than in TRJ. AXR and DIR sweating volumes (P<0.0001) were negatively correlated, and sweat onset times (P<0.0001) were positively correlated with the duration of residence in the tropics (2 to 13 years). The observed attenuation of sweating in TRJ suggests that temperate natives may acquire heat tolerance with improved sweating economy similar to tropical natives after prolonged residence in the tropics.