title: Stimulation of drinking by bacterial endotoxins in the rat.
abstract: We investigated the effects of endotoxins on water balance, rectal temperature, and food intake in male Long-Evans rats with femoral venous catheters. Extracts of Escherichia coli or Salmonella minnesota, in doses ranging from 125 to 500 micrograms/kg IV, stimulated drinking and reduced urinary water loss for several hours. The net gain of 5 ml water 2 h after the lowest dose of E. coli endotoxin was sufficient to reduce plasma osmolality and sodium concentration 2 to 3%. Drinking occurred during the period of hypothermia that frequently precedes the onset of endotoxin-induced fever, so cannot be attributed to increased body temperature. Doses of endotoxin causing drinking inhibited both spontaneous and deprivation-induced feeding. The cause of the drinking is not known, but may involve mechanisms other than the known dehydrational signals controlling thirst.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Waselenchuk
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Evered
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001066:Appetite / Q000187:drug effects; D001833:Body Temperature Regulation / Q000187:drug effects*; D004231:Diuresis / Q000187:drug effects; D004326:Drinking / Q000187:drug effects*; D004435:Eating / Q000187:drug effects; D004731:Endotoxins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004926:Escherichia coli; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D012475:Salmonella; D013894:Thirst / Q000187:drug effects; D014882:Water-Electrolyte Balance / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D004731:Endotoxins; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides