Effect of Emotional Stress,Anesthesia,and Death on Body Temperature of Mice Exposed to Gold

Abstract

Summary

Both restrained and unrestrained mice were exposed to cold. The unrestrained animals experienced a small drop in body temperature as compared to the restrained animals whose body temperatures dropped to the death point (approx. 10°C) in about one hour. Anesthetized and dead mice demonstrated greater temperature drops than were found in conscious restrained mice. Conditioning by maintaining the animals one hour per day in restraining cages resulted in a lesser temperature drop on exposure to cold as well as greatly decreased mortality. It was concluded that emotional hypothermia, not resulting from restricted breathing, can be produced in mice by the stress of confinement.