Environmental enclosure for the determination of fuel metabolism across a range of temperatures

这是一个环境围栏的要求，用于我们的小型啮齿动物代谢笼系统，将允许在代谢笼内可变温度控制。这种基础设施是迫切需要的，因为它将使我们能够在一定温度范围内测量能量消耗和全身底物氧化，这是我们目前所不具备的能力。鉴于我们NSERC资助的研究项目扩展到研究寒冷条件下的燃料代谢，以及越来越认识到在热中性条件下居住啮齿动物的重要性，这种需求变得至关重要；事实上，我们最近的一些论文和拨款申请，因未能测量热中性条件下的能量消耗而受到批评。为了保持国际竞争力，并继续为高素质人才（HQP）提供最高标准的培训，我们的研究项目必须能够在一系列环境温度下测量能量消耗和燃料氧化。虽然该地区的其他大学也有能够调节温度的代谢笼，但在机构之间转移动物在后勤上具有挑战性，并可能对动物造成压力，这可能会混淆实验结果。此外，实验通常需要一次对动物进行数天的监测，这意味着对系统的需求很大，这进一步限制了访问其他机构所需基础设施的可行性。考虑到这些问题，在内部获得所需的基础设施是测量不同温度下能量消耗的唯一可行方法。***主要申请者的研究项目是综合性的，鼓励HQP考虑影响生物系统的所有因素。测量能量消耗提供了对各种扰动反应的关键信息。事实上，获得所需的基础设施将使我们能够考虑在寒冷中改变能源消耗和燃料利用。这些相同的终点也将在热中性条件下的实验啮齿动物中进行测量，热中性条件越来越被认为优于室温条件，可以翻译为人体生理学。来自6个研究实验室的40多个HQP将立即直接受益于所需设备的采购。该小组包括17名硕士，14名博士，13名本科生和4名博士后，这是一个庞大而多样化的学员群体，来自多个公平寻求群体的强大代表。值得注意的是，在预期用户的实验室中，超过50%的HQP是女性

This is a request for an Environment Enclosure to be used with our metabolic caging system for small rodents that will allow variable temperature control within the metabolic caging. This infrastructure is urgently needed as it will allow us to measure energy expenditure and whole-body substrate oxidation across a range of temperatures, capabilities that we do not currently possess. This need has become critical given the expansion of our NSERC funded research programs into the study of fuel metabolism in the cold and the increasingly recognized importance of housing rodents under thermal neutral conditions; indeed, a number of our recent papers and grant applications, have been criticized for their failure to measure energy expenditure under thermal neutral conditions. In order for us to remain internationally competitive and to continue to provide the highest standard of training to highly qualified personnel (HQP), it is essential for our research programs to be able to measure energy expenditure and fuel oxidation across a range of environmental temperatures. While other universities in the region have metabolic cages with the capacity to regulate temperature the transfer of animals between institutions is logistically challenging and can cause stress to the animals, which can confound experimental results. Moreover, experiments typically involve monitoring animals for several days at a time, which means there will be significant demands on the system which further limits the feasibility of accessing the required infrastructure at other institutions. Given these points, obtaining the requested infrastructure in-house is the only feasible way to measure energy expenditure across various temperatures.***The research programs of primary applicants are integrative in nature, where HQP are encouraged to consider all factors influencing biological systems. Measuring energy expenditure provides critical information regarding the response to various perturbations. Indeed, obtaining the requested infrastructure will allow us to consider alterations in energy expenditure and fuel utilization in the cold. These same endpoints will also be measured in experimental rodents housed at thermal neutrality, a condition which is increasingly being recognized as superior to room temperature housing for translatability to human physiology. Over 40 HQP from across 6 research laboratories will immediately and directly benefit from the acquisition of the requested equipment. This group includes 17 MSc, 14 PhD, 13 undergraduates and 4 post-doctoral fellows, a large and diverse group of trainees with strong representation from multiple equity seeking groups. Of note greater than 50% of the HQP in the laboratories of the anticipated users are female.**