The effect of extreme temperatures and starvation on the body proportions of the rat

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Abstract
The effects of extremely cold and hot environments on body proportions of rats were studied. These effects included changes in the length of the tail, trunk, extremities, cranio‐facial and nasal dimensions, in bone robusticity and bone shape, in the size of the ear and in some characteristics of the skin and hair. Since animals in both extreme temperatures fail to gain normal body weight, all changes were also studied in a group of starving rats. Because of the lower body weight and its concomitant reduction of body measurements, absolute values were avoided for analysis and all parameters were related to neurocranial length and trunk length. Such a triple experimental approach (response to cold, heat, and starvation) combined with a two‐fold frame of reference (neurocranial length and trunk length), as well as statistical corrections for body weight loss, made it possible to differentiate between nutrition‐specific and temperature‐specific responses under conditions of extreme temperature exposure. Moreover, some attention was given to endocrine pathways involved in some morphological changes. The methodological advantages of a multi‐experimental approach over a single‐experimental technique were demonstrated.