Effect of cold-exposure on rat organ blood flows

Rat tissue blood flows and heart output were determined in adult Wistar rats under up to two hours of cold (4 degrees C) exposure, using radioactive 46Sc microspheres. Circulating glucose, lactate and triacylglycerol levels were also determined. Glucose concentrations increased with cold exposure in spite of the drainage of substrates induced by the activation of thermogenesis. Plasma triacylglycerol levels agree with a high involvement of fats in the sustenance of heat production. Cold-exposure had an immediate effect decreasing skin circulation, but increased that of muscle and brown adipose tissue. Kidney and intestine blood flows were maintained. In liver, blood flow increased progressively with cold-exposure. White adipose tissue showed--at first--low blood flow, but increased in parallel to that of liver. The data presented show a distribution of the blood in the body of the cold-exposed rat in which thermogenic responsibilities and supply of blood are evenly distributed throughout. The importance of haemodynamic changes in brown adipose tissue was considerable but the increased share of muscle blood flow suggests that it may have a global role in maintaining thermal homeostasis.