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Effect of Environmental Temperature on Energy Balance and Thermogenesis in Rats Fed Normal or Low Protein Diets¹

Department of Physiology, St. George's Hospital Medical School, Tooting, London SW17 0RE, United Kingdom

Rats fed a low protein (9% metabolizable energy) diet and house at 24°C gained less weight and body energy then controls fed a normal (25%) protein diet. Energy intake and expenditure corrected for body size (kJ/(kg^0.75·d)] were similar in rats fed the two diets, but energetic efficiency was suppressed in low protein-fed rats, and the thermogenic response to norepinephrine and the activity of brown adipose tissue (mitochondrial GDP binding) were both significantly elevated. Housing at a higher temperature (29°C) suppressed energy expenditure and brown fat activity in animals fed either diet, and gross efficiency was greater in control animals at 29°C than at 24°C but unaffected in the protein-deficient group. The differences in brown fat activity between dietary groups were still apparent at 29°C. The results suggest that thermogenesis induced by feeding low protein diets is not markedly inhibited by a higher environmental temperature.

KEY WORDS: • thermogenesis • brown adipose tissue • low protein diet • ternperature

¹ This work was supported by grants from Imperial Chemical Industries plc and The Royal Society (NJR).

Manuscript received 20 March 1986. Revision accepted 11 December 1986.