Summary
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1.
Total oxygen consumption (totalVO2), leg blood flow (legQ V) and leg oxygen uptake (legVO2) were measured in young steers each exposed to thermoneutral and moderately cold environments on the same day.
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2.
Cold sufficient to double resting totalVO2 caused a 3 to 6-fold increase in legQ Va 11/2 to 4-fold increase in leg arteriovenous oxygen saturation difference (SO2 A-EIV) and a small but significant elevation in haemoglobin concentration, resulting in a 5 to 24-fold increase in legVO2. This represented a 3 to 12-fold increase in the contribution of the hind leg to totalVO2.
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3.
These results were unaffected by whether thermoneutrality preceded cold orvice versa.
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4.
TotalVO2 was significantly correlated with legQ V, legVO2 and SO2 A-EIV in both environments. Regression analysis showed that during cold exposure legVO2 varied with legQ V, rather than SO2 A-EIV.
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5.
The metabolic response to cold of the hind leg is attributed to shivering skeletal muscle, and is shown to contribute substantially (15% per leg) to the response of the whole animal.
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Bell, A.W., Thompson, G.E. & Findlay, J.D. The contribution of the shivering hind leg to the metabolic response to cold of the young Ox (Bos taurus). Pflugers Arch. 346, 341–350 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00596189
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00596189