Life Lines by Dr. Dolittle

Tag Archive for ‘tenrec’

Leave a comment

Little-known functions of the spleen: Q&A with Dr. Frank van Breukelen and Gilbecca Smith, University of Las Vegas

We are excited to feature Dr. Frank van Breukelen and his graduate student, Gilbecca Rae Smith, from the University of Las Vegas, Nevada. They presented exciting new research at the 2024 American Physiology Summit examining some little-known functions of the spleen.  Q: We often associate the spleen with its ability to filter blood and make white blood cells to fight infections. We don’t often consider the importance of its ability to […]

Continue Reading →

Leave a comment

Tenrecs may shed light on the evolution of body temperature regulation

The common tenrec (Tenrec ecaudatus) just may be a living representative of ancestral placental mammals and they are very interesting when it comes to body temperature regulation and torpor. Torpor is a complex series of physiological changes that reduce an animal’s physical activity as well as heart, breathing and metabolic rates, which also results in decreases in body temperature than can be as low as their surrounding environment. Many mammalian […]

Continue Reading →