Temperature Regulation in Mammals and Other Vertebrates

Abstract

Most studies of temperature regulation relate to very few mammalian species including man. The general application of such studies is often assumed, but there are variations between species in the degree of stability of body temperature and in the processes of heat production and heat loss. Since mammals radiated early in their evolution, it is difficult to know whether species variations represent variations upon a basic thermoregulatory system, or whether similar degrees of thermoregulation can depend on essentially dissimilar physiological processes. Based on the literature an analysis is made of the evolutionary progression and the physiology of temperature regulation in vertebrates. After a detailed examination of recent attempts to understand thermoregulation, first by means of analogy with physical control systems, and then at the neuronal level in the central nervous system, consideration is given to several other aspects of the subject. These include fever, hibernation and other forms of thermolability, the metabolic differences between cold blooded and warm blooded organisms, comparisons between different mammals, and comparisons between mammals and birds.