The small animal sub-core of the EBL provides support for PI’s who want to measure energy intake, energy intake, physical activity, and body composition in small animals. This is the only metabolic phenotyping core on campus, and the specialized equipment has been uniquely modified so that measures of energy balance can be acquired while assessing nutrient trafficking and metabolism. Although most of the work involves strains of rats and genetically modified mice, the equipment has also been used to study ground squirrels, pythons, and flies. The 400sqft IACUC-approved NORC animal satellite facility is used for long term housing, metabolic phenotyping, intake monitoring, nutrient tracer studies, rodent exercise, and other preclinical procedures.
Services offered:
- Body Composition and Bone Density. To provide body composition information in live animals we offer both DXA and quantitative magnetic resonance (EchoMRI). Bone density can be determined with DXA through the use of small animal software. Post mortem body composition can also be determined in large organs with the EchoMRI.
- Intake Monitoring. Intake monitoring can be performed by two methods. The more general and common method is to manually weigh the food, correcting for spillage over 24, 48, or 72hr periods while animals are housed in metabolic caging racks. The second method is BioDAQ, a real-time food intake monitoring system that measures the episodic feeding activity of singly housed lab animals in their home cage. Adlib, restrictive, or intermittent meal feeding can be achieved with automated gate closure following consumption of a given allotment of food.
- Indirect Calorimetry. The EMC maintains two 8-chamber indirect calorimetry systems (1 rat, 1 mouse) within the NORC animal satellite facility for the determination of energy intake, energy expenditure, whole body fuel utilization, and both resting and activity energy expenditure. The mouse system is enclosed within a metabolic chamber that facilitates studies over a range of temperatures (4-30C).
- Tracer Calorimetry. In concert with indirect calorimetry, stable or radio-labeled isotopes may be incorporated into the diet in order to examine nutrient oxidation, trafficking, and storage.
- Physical activity. Daily physical activity is usually measured in concert with indirect calorimetry. Total, ambulatory, and non-ambulatory activities are recorded in real time.
- Exercise Training. We maintain 4 Exer 3/6 Columbus Instruments treadmills within the animal satellite facility for training. Exercise energy expenditure can be determined on a single lane calorimetry treadmill.
