Stephen Compton at work in the lab

STEPHEN COMPTON Department of Biology Murray State University, Murray, KY 42071. Mentor: Terry Derting Title of Presentation: Determining the immune system's role in a mammalian energy budget. Presented at: Kentucky Academy of Science (First place, Oral Competition, Physiology Section) and at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research The research was supported by: Howard Hughes Medical Institute ABSTRACT The amount of energy required to maintain a functioning immune system and mount an immune response was studied in wild white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus. I tested the null hypotheses 1) the energy cost of maintaining a functioning immune system is not a significant energy demanding process, 2) there is no significant energetic cost of mounting an immune response, and 3) other systems of the body are not affected by changes in the immune system. To determine the amounts of energy used, daily metabolic rate (DMR), resting metabolic rate (RMR), and the masses of vital organs were measured. The energy required to maintain an immune system was studied by comparing a control group to a group that was immunosuppressed. There were no significant differences found in the DMR, RMR or organ masses between control and experimental mice. To measure the energetic cost of mounting an immune response, control mice were tested against mice injected with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and phytohemagglutinin (PHA) to stimulate the humoral and cell-mediated components of the immune system, respectively. There were no significant differences in DMR or RMR between groups; however, both the wet and dry masses of the small intestine and testes were significantly lower in the SRBC-PHA treated mice. My findings suggested that maintaining a functioning immune system was not a significant energy demanding process. Mounting an immune response, however, was a significant energy demanding process that necessitated trade-offs in allocation of energy within the organism. | Previous Page | Undergraduate Research Home | | Home Page | Date Modified March, 2002