title: Hypobaric hypoxia and hedonic matrix in rats.
abstract: This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of continuous exposure to hypobaric hypoxia on the feeding behavior and taste responses of rats, under simulated conditions of a high altitude (HA) of 7,620 m for 21 h a day and consecutively for 18 d, which more closely resembles actual field conditions. Their food, water intake and body weight were recorded daily, and blood sugar was estimated once a week. All the parameters were recorded for a period of 18 d each, before, during, and after exposure to simulated HA. The results show a decrease in daily food and water intake and body weight, and mild hypoglycemia during hypoxic exposure. Single-bottle and two-bottle tests showed a preference for sweet solutions over water, citric acid, sodium chloride, and quinine sulfate during exposure. The two-bottle test showed a preference for glucose over calorically-inert saccharine. The continuous exposure in this study produced qualitatively similar but quantitatively accentuated results as compared to intermittent 6 h exposure contiguously for 21 d. High-altitude stress appears to influence food intake such that sensory cues assume greater significance during feeding behavior.
authors.affiliation: Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences, Delhi, India. physiol@drdipa.ren.nic.in
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Panjwani
authors.forename: D K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Yadav
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Chandra
authors.forename: K N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Selvamurthy
mesh_terms: D000531:Altitude; D000818:Animals; D001274:Atmospheric Pressure; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D000860:Hypoxia; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013649:Taste / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose