Associated Effects of Diet, Environmental Temperature and Duration of Exposure on the Major Constituents of the Livers of Rats

¹ From the Arctic Aeromedical Laboratory, APO 731, Seattle, Washington

The effects of feeding pemmican and a stock diet, and of exposure to an environment of 5°C for periods of 1 month or 5 months, on the percentages of glycogen, total fat, phospholipid, protein and water in the livers of rats were studied, concomitantly. Cold exposure had the following significant effects: a) a reduction in percentage glycogen of both dietary groups, b) a reduction in percentage total fat of the pemmican group, c) an increase in phospholipid (percentage of total fat) of both dietary groups, d) an increase in percentage water of both dietary groups. The ingestion of pemmican had the following significant effects: a) a reduction in percentage glycogen, b) an increase in percentage total fat, c) an increase in phospholipid (percentage of total fat) at 27°C, d) a decrease in percentage water. Statistical analysis revealed that the effects of cold exposure and diet were dependent to a certain extent upon each other and that the duration of exposure modified the effects of both of these experimental treatments in several cases.