Measuring Metabolic Rate of Rat (Rattus norvegicus) and Chick

(Gallus gallus domesticus)

J.F.P. Borillo, N.N.M. Caballar, C.H. Coronacion, J.C.R. Damasco, Jr.

Keywords:
metabolic rate, oxygen
consumption, rat, chick
Summary
The metabolic rates of rat and chick were determined
by using an improvised ecochamber. The weight if the rat is
316.1g while the chick weighs 35.1g. The basal metabolic rate
(BMR) of chick and rat was measured at 20°C. The BMR of
the chick is lower compared to therat. Chick BMR ranges from
17 ml O2/kg/hr up to 50 ml O2/kg/hr while Mouse BMR is 140
ml O2/kg/hr up to 180 ml O2/kg/hr. This discrepancy in the
expected result suggests that there are other factors that
contributes to metabolic rate of an organism, namely:
difference in normal metabolic rate, stress body composition,
climate, and activity.

Introduction the organisms since the rate of oxygen

Scientists seek to further understand
the way in which organisms operate in in
vivo. Therefore, the evolution of organisms is
confined within the area of what is
energetically feasible, with this, energy is
considered as one of the most important
currencies that determines the genetic fitness
of organisms and the measurement of energy
turnover is therefore the central importance
to understanding of the physiological,
behavioral, and evolutionary ecology of
organisms. In simple definition, metabolism
is the summation of all the chemical reactions
that occur in living organisms while the
metabolic rate is the amount of energy that is
used by an animal per unit of time.
The aim of this experiment is to
measure and compare the metabolic rate of
rat and chick. This will be measured by
determining the oxygen consumptions of the
consumption is directly related to energy
utilization. Some factors that affect metabolic
rate are body size, body composition,
climate, activity, and body temperature.
Specifically for fish, their metabolic
rate relies both on respiration and intake of
nutrition to feed and supply metabolism.
Usually, it is the PASCO ME-6667
EcoChamber that is used to measure the
variables needed in an ecosystem model but
in this case, an improvised chamber was
used. One thing that differentiates fishes from
humans is their being poikilotherms (animals
that cannot maintain their body temperature)
which is one factor why this organism is
used. Rats on the other hand are used because
it represents the mammalian groups like
humans. Lastly, chicks are used to represent
the birds and reptiles
J.F.P. Borillo. N.N.M. Caballar, C.H. Coronacion, J.C.R. Damasco, Jr. Measuring Metabolic Rates

Experimental Procedure “O2 used in 1 hour” and its metabolic rate per
A. Respiration in Terrestrial Animals kilogram of body weight (kgBW) was
A triple-beam balance was used to determined using the metabolic rate formula
determine the weight of the rat used. The rat given. Lastly, the data was recorded in the
was then placed in a chamber; the gaps on the Baseline section of the chart in the row
side of the lid was covered with Vaseline labelled “Metabolic Rate”.
Petroleum Jelly. The knob on the rightmost
tube was opened to allow the rat to breathe Results and Discussion
while the rest of the set-up is being prepared. The basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the
The knob connected to the pipette was rate at which the body at rest uses energy to
closed. When everything was set, the keep the vital functions working such as
rightmost knob was closed, and the knob breathing (Speakman, 2000). Basal
connected to the tube continuous with the metabolic rate represents an essential factor
pipette is opened. Afterwards, the initial of animal energy budgets (Speakman, 2000).
volume of O2 was noted. The oxygen levels BMR is correlated with various
were observed every 5 minutes for 15 physiological, ecological, and life-history
minutes and was written down. The same variables, as well as phylogeny (Lovegrove,
procedure was done for chick. 2005). BMR was developed and important in
determining the thyroid status. It was used to
B. Respiration in Aquatic Animals compare the metabolic rates among animals
The procedure for measuring fish (Mueller & Diamond, 2001). Specifically,
metabolism is stated as follows. However, for this experiment the Rattus norvegicus
the group was not able to do it. A magnetic (rat), weighing 316.1g, and Gallus gallus
stirrer was placed in the EcoChamber with (chick), weighing 35.1g, BMR were
the stir bar placed beneath it. Two to three compared.
fishes were placed in the chamber, then the
The oxygen consumption per hour of
holes of the lid were placed with a
both chick and rat were computed using this
temperature sensor, an oxygen gas sensor,
equation:
and a carbon dioxide gas sensor. Afterwards,
the lid was sealed tightly to the chamber and 𝑚𝑙 𝑂2 𝑚𝑙 𝑂2 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑒𝑑 60 𝑚𝑖𝑛.
=( )𝑥( )
ℎ𝑟 1 𝑚𝑖𝑛 1 ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑟
all the other holes in the EcoChamber were
filled with stoppers. Next, the stirrer was
turned on to a low setting and data was The metabolic rate per kilogram of
collected after. The oxygen and carbon body weight (kgBW) was computed using:
dioxide levels were observed every 15 mins
𝑚𝑙𝑂2⁄
for 60 minutes. The data observed was ℎ𝑟
𝑀𝑒𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑐 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 =
recorded and the oxygen consumption per 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 (𝑘𝑔. )
hour for each fish was determined with the
Metabolic energy of various
formula given. Then it was recorded in the
organisms comes from the process of
Baseline section of chart in the row labelled
respiration. Hence, metabolic rate is directly
J.F.P. Borillo. N.N.M. Caballar, C.H. Coronacion, J.C.R. Damasco, Jr.
proportional to the rate of oxygen
consumption (Paradis et al., 2004). Larger
endothermic animals tend to have lower basal
metabolic rates than smaller endothermic
animals.
Figure 1. oxygen consumption of chick for 15
minutes with 5-minute interval
Figure 2. oxygen consumption of rat for 15
minutes with 5-minute interval
Inside the closed chamber, a stopper
with a pipette connected to water and another
stopper for emission of carbon dioxide were
used to measure the amount of oxygen in
milliliters used by the rat and chick. The
upward movement of water in the pipette was
recorded and was deduced the oxygen
consumption and basal metabolic rate of the
organism.
Measuring Metabolic Rates
The oxygen consumption of chick
(figure 1) is relatively steady. The general
trend for the results was a slight increase in
the oxygen consumption for 15 minutes. It is
possible that the body temperature of the
chick is being regulated. Increasing the
consumption of oxygen leads to an increase
in the metabolic rate that in turn produces
heat for the body.
The oxygen consumption of rat
compared to the chick is fluctuating (figure
2). As observed in the experiment, the first
five minutes the rat was continuously
walking around the chamber. Physical
activity such as walking requires oxygen to
produce energy. At the ten-minute mark
oxygen consumption suddenly dropped, this
is due to the body temperature of the frog.
The physical activity done on the first part
produced heat in the body. The tendency of
the rat is to rest, to cool down its body, and
during resting period little oxygen is required
by the body. For the last five-minute, the
body temperature of the rat started to drop,
and to warm it up, physical activity was done
that leads to the increase in the consumption.
Of oxygen.
Figure 3. average basal metabolic rate of
chick and rat
J.F.P. Borillo. N.N.M. Caballar, C.H. Coronacion, J.C.R. Damasco, Jr.
The metabolic rate of an animal is the
oxygen consumed by the cells, considering
the weight and oxygen consumption to
express the basal metabolic rate. For
mammals there is a relationship between the
basal metabolic rate and body mass, and their
typical relationship is allometric (White and
&Seymour, 2003). Allometry describes how
the characteristics of living creatures change
with size (Shingleton, 2010). The basal
metabolic rate of animals is expected to
decrease as their body size increases
(Holliday et.al, 1967). In the experiment the,
the outcomes we got were expected to the
results of previous studies (figure 3). The
mouse used was relatively bigger in terms of
size compared to the chick, yet its BMR is
lower compared to the small chick. There are
other variables that affect the metabolic rate
of animals that may have cause different
resultst. These other variables may include
body size, temperature, age, sex of the
animal, stress level, and the structure of
organs.
The metabolic rate of animals
belonging to the same or different species
vary with the body size. Smaller animals are
found to have bigger value of metabolic rate
as compared to organisms that are larger
(Whitford & Hutchison, 1967). Further
emphasis on the inverse relationship of
weight and metabolic rate can be seen on the
formula used to calculate the metabolic rate
which is
𝑚𝑙𝑂2⁄
ℎ𝑟
𝑀𝑒𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑐 𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒 =
𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 (𝑘𝑔.)
this further strengthens the claim that as the
weight of the organisms decreases, the
metabolic rate will increase. The results that
Measuring Metabolic Rates
we got were what was supposed to be
expected. On figure 3, the it shows the
inverse relationship of the BMR and weight
size.
All chemical reactions in our body
proceed faster as temperature increases.
Endothermic organisms such as the mammals
and birds maintain constant body temperature
over a range of temperatures (thermal neutral
zone) without the direct influence on the rate
of metabolism. (Tieleman et al., 2003). The
metabolic rate increases to maintain constant
body temperature (Tieleman et al., 2003).
This was apparent on the mouse, as when it
was put in the chamber it continuously
walked around to maintain its constant body
temperature, as the room temperature during
the experiment was 20° C.
The metabolic rate for both animals
and chick as they age has a negative trend
(Speakman, 2005). This means that as the
animal continues to age, the metabolic rate
decreases. From infancy until the animal
matures, there is a considerable increase in
metabolic rate, and when the animal reaches
a certain age, relationship becomes inverse.
In the experiment the chick was still in its
early stage, thus its metabolic rate is
considerably high compared to the mouse
that was around 5 months old. The results
show consistency as it had a negative trend
also.
Another factor that could affect
metabolic rate is stress. Whether it is physical
. or emotional may cause an increase or
decrease in the metabolic rate of an organism.
Internal stress such as sickness or disease, or
external stress where in the environment
applies pressure on to the organism. This
J.F.P. Borillo. N.N.M. Caballar, C.H. Coronacion, J.C.R. Damasco, Jr.
could be a possible cause for the difference
the metabolic rates of the 2 animals, as stress
levels were not considered and recorded.
The difference in the evolution of
birds and mammals, may cause a difference
in metabolic rates. The evolution of
endothermy and high levels of sustained
activity in birds and mammal goes hand in
hand with the increase of the capacity of
aerobic pathways for metabolism of organs.
This increase is shown in the basal metabolic
rate. BMR represents the difference between
the species in it ability to take in oxygen
(Kirkwood, 1983; Konarzewsi & Diamons,
1994).
A higher metabolic rate should have
been observed from the chick as birds have a
unidirectional respiratory system wherein the
gasses exchange between the lungs and the
blood in the parabronchi and while mammal
have a bidirectional respiratory system where
gas exchange occurs in the alveoli (West et
al., 2007). The exchange of oxygen and
carbon dioxide of birds occur in the
microscopic tubules called air capillaries.
Hence, avian respiratory is more effective
compared to mammalian respiratory system,
transferring grater amount of oxygen with
each breath (Powell, 2000). This explains
that the chick should have had greater oxygen
consumption compared to mouse, if the
structure is only considered.
Conclusion
Smaller animals are found to have
bigger value of metabolic rate as compared to
organisms that are larger. However, lower
BMR in chick could be because of the
difference in normal metabolic rate for rat
Measuring Metabolic Rates
and chick. The stress received by the
organisms, which is not considered in this
experiment, may also affect the results.
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