Imagine being able to explore the Earth’s oceans without needing special oxygen equipment. Loggerhead sea turtles have this ability and can actually hold their breath for up to 7 hours! According to the Guiness Book of World Records, Budimir Šobat from Croatia set the record in 2021 for being able to hold his breath for 24 minutes and 37.36 seconds underwater. While quite remarkable, he would need to hold his […]
In a new study published in The Journal of Neuroscience and presented at the American Physiology Summit earlier this month, graduate student Nikolaus Bueschke, postdoctoral fellow Dr. Lara Amaral-Silva and Dr. Joseph Santin (University of Missouri, Columbia) together with researchers Min Hu and Alvaro Alvarez (University of North Carolina at Greensboro), explored how bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus) emerging from hibernation tolerate hypoxia while they kickstart physiological functions in ice-covered ponds. This […]
The 2024 American Physiology Summit is set to kick off next week! There will be many sessions dedicated to comparative physiology research and I look forward to sharing what’s happening at the APS meeting with you!
Hibernation allows animals to reduce their energy needs during winter, when food may be scarce and high amounts of energy would be required to maintain body temperature. These animals prepare for winter by storing body fat that can be used as fuel during hibernation. Skeletal muscles in particular have high energy needs as they make up nearly half of an animal’s body mass. They also play important roles in regulating […]
As wisely stated in an editorial by Dr. George Brooks, UC Berkeley (2001), “Nature is smarter, and things are more complex than we mortals imagine.” Sure lactate is produced during exercise and is often blamed for causing muscles to fatigue, but there is much more to the story. In fact, research has shown that lactate plays many important physiological roles in the body such as serving as a metabolic fuel […]
The lifespan of a red blood cell (RBC) in a healthy human is about 120 days and approximately 200 billion red blood cells (RBCs) are replaced every day in healthy adult humans! Most (80%) of the carbon monoxide produced in humans comes from the breakdown of heme which is released when these red blood cells (RBC) are broken down through normal homeostatic processes. Sickle cell anemia shortens the lifespan of […]
In an interesting new study published in Nature Communications, researchers compared gene expression of Jamaican fruit bats (Artibeus jamaicensis) and insectivorous big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) to humans with diabetes. Fruit eating bats, in particular, intrigued researchers as their diet is high in sugars requiring the animals to rapidly regulate glucose to prevent diabetes-like complications. In fact, fruit bats are able to lower their blood sugar faster after a meal […]
Freezing temperatures are no match for alligators. Recent images emerging from Texas and North Carolina show frozen ponds and swamps dotted with alligators. Similar to animals that experience torpor, alligators are able to reduce their metabolism and heart rate to as little as three beats per minute to survive freezing temperatures. This torpor-like state is called brumation. Poking their snouts above the ice before it freezes, allows them to continue […]
Pets infected with Covid rarely make headlines, although the US Department of Agriculture’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory is tracking cases as part of its One Health Initiative. The goal of this initiative is to recognize the connections between people, plants, animals, and the environment they share to promote optimal health. Covid, for example, not only infects humans but has also been detected in cats, dogs, ferrets, wild animals (deer), as […]
The Arizona Physiological Society held their 16th annual meeting this past weekend at Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona. The Arizona Established Scientist Keynote Speaker was Dr. Christopher Glembotski, Professor of Internal Medicine and Director of the Translational Cardiovascular Research Center at the University of Arizona, Phoenix campus. Ischemic diseases, such as strokes and heart attacks, disrupt the normal functioning of the endoplasmic reticulum, which alters protein production and folding. His […]
Life Lines by Dr. Dolittle 