title: Ontogeny of non-shivering thermogenesis in Muscovy ducklings (Cairina moschata).
abstract: In precocial birds, developing the capacity for early regulatory thermogenesis appears as a fundamental prerequisite for survival and growth in cold environments. However, the exact nature of these processes has not been thoroughly investigated. Several bird species, such as Muscovy ducks (Cairina moschata), develop muscular non-shivering thermogenesis when chronically exposed to cold. The aim of this study was to investigate the age-dependent development of non-shivering thermogenesis in ducklings reared either at thermoneutrality (25°C) or in the cold (4°C). Non-shivering thermogenesis was assessed weekly by simultaneously measuring whole body metabolic heat production and electromyographic activity during shivering at different temperatures ranging from 29°C to 0°C. We found that ducklings reared at thermoneutrality displayed a capacity for non-shivering thermogenesis during the first month of post-hatching life. This thermogenic mechanism increased further in ducklings chronically exposed to a cold environment, but it decreased over time when birds were kept in a thermoneutral environment.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Ecologie des Hydrosystèmes Naturels et Anthropisés, UMR 5023, CNRS, Université Lyon 1, 43 Bvd 11 Novembre 1918, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France. Electronic address: lteulier@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Loïc
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Teulier
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Ecologie des Hydrosystèmes Naturels et Anthropisés, UMR 5023, CNRS, Université Lyon 1, 43 Bvd 11 Novembre 1918, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Jean-Louis
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Rouanet
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Évolutive, UMR 5558, CNRS, Université Lyon 1, 43 Bvd 11 Novembre 1918, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France; Brain Function Research Group, School of Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, 7 York Road, Parktown, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa.
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rey
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Ecologie des Hydrosystèmes Naturels et Anthropisés, UMR 5023, CNRS, Université Lyon 1, 43 Bvd 11 Novembre 1918, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Damien
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Roussel
mesh_terms: D000064:Acclimatization; D000818:Animals; D001833:Body Temperature Regulation; D003080:Cold Temperature; D004372:Ducks / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D004576:Electromyography; D005934:Glucagon / Q000378:metabolism; D009132:Muscles / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D012768:Shivering / Q000502:physiology; D022722:Thermogenesis / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D005934:Glucagon
keywords: Birds; Cold acclimation; Metabolic rate; Ontogeny; Shivering