Effects of Tissue Temperature on Mammalian Activity Rhythms
This extract was created in the absence of an abstract.
Excerpt
The endogenous circadian rhythm of an animal can serve as a means of estimation of the time of day, independent of environmental clues. Such a “biological clock” can enable the animal to maintain strictly nocturnal or diurnal habits, or to make use of sun-compass orientation, provided the period of the rhythm does not differ greatly from 24 hours.
One of the factors which might be expected to interfere with the accuracy of such a physiological rhythm is tissue temperature. Stability of the rhythm requires a Q10 value close to 1, unless the maintenance of a constant tissue temperature can be relied upon. Insensitivity of the clock to temperature variation is thus a virtual necessity in any poikilothermic organism, and, in fact, such insensitivity has been widely demonstrated [1, 2, 3, 4].
Mammals and birds, on the other hand, because of their closely regulated core temperatures, could theoretically use physiological processes...
