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Blood flow in the brood patch of Bantam hens: evidence of cold vasodilatation

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Summary

  1. 1.

    Blood flow was measured in the brood patch of Bantam hens by recording the washout of133Xe from the tissue in different experimental conditions.

  2. 2.

    In hens incubating 5 eggs at normal temperature, cutaneous and subcutaneous blood flow in the brood patch averaged 0.31 ml·min−1·g−1 and 0.15 ml·min−1·g−1, respectively.

  3. 3.

    Cooling the brood patch in restrained hens immediately increased cutaneous and subcutaneous blood flow by an average of 83% and 63%, respectively. The increase in blood flow was restricted to the site of cooling, while neighbouring skin areas showed little change in flow. This cold vasodilatation could also be elicited in hens incubating water circulated eggs and was unaffected by local anaesthetics.

  4. 4.

    The observations suggest that the vasodilatation in response to cooling is due to a direct temperature influence on the smooth muscle cells of the brood patch vasculature.

  5. 5.

    It is suggested that the cold vasodilatation may be important for providing increased heat transfer to the eggs at low ambient temperatures or when the parent bird returns to cool eggs after feeding excursions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Cell Biology and Anatomy, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100, Copenhagen OE, Denmark

    Uffe Midtgård

  2. Institute of Medical Physiology B, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200, Copenhagen N, Denmark

    Per Sejrsen

  3. Department of Zoophysiology, University of Aarhus, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark

    Kjell Johansen

Authors
  1. Uffe Midtgård
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  2. Per Sejrsen
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  3. Kjell Johansen
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Midtgård, U., Sejrsen, P. & Johansen, K. Blood flow in the brood patch of Bantam hens: evidence of cold vasodilatation. J Comp Physiol B 155, 703–709 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00694584

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00694584

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