The hibernation cycle and related changes in the brown fat tissue of Citellus lateralis

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Abstract
The hibernating habits of Citellus lateralis under standard laboratory conditions are described. It has been shown that it is possible to use a biopsy technique to investigate the brown fat tissues without serious disturbance to the hibernation pattern. This technique was used to sample brown and white fat tissues in the same animal at various seasons of the year. Histological studies did not reveal any changes in morphology or lipid composition which could be related purely to the hibernating season, however, during the short periods of arousal a large proportion of the brown fat cells appeared to be partially depleted of neutral fat. At this time a large increase in Luxol fast blue staining was always observed, which may be due to unmasking of tissue phosphatides.