Age- and sex-related differences in febrile response to peripheral pyrogens in the rabbit

A reduced febrile response with aging has been reported in mice, rats, rabbits, squirrel monkeys and man. Young adult male and female rats and rabbits respond differently to pyrogens, but little is known about relative febrile responses in old male and female animals. To further describe the effects of age and sex on fever, we gave intravenous injections of Salmonella typhosa endotoxin (0.05 micrograms/kg) and of endogenous pyrogen (EP) (40 microliters/kg) to old and young, male and female rabbits. Old females did not exhibit smaller fevers in response to endotoxin compared to young females, but both young and old females had smaller fevers than aged and young males. Old male rabbits did not have a decreased febrile response to endotoxin. Old females, but not old males, showed a reduced febrile response to EP, the presumed endogenous mediator of endotoxin fever, when compared to young rabbits. To determine if the reduced febrile responses were due to reduced capacity to generate heat, D-amphetamine sulfate (2 or 5 mg/kg i.v.) was administered, and the resulting hyperthermias indicated that all groups of rabbits, including the aged and young females, were capable of raising body temperature to high levels. Body weight and reduced capacity to produce and retain heat do not contribute to these differences in fever. We conclude that the febrile response is not uniform over age, and that it is also strongly influenced by sex and type of pyrogen.