Just the memory of being cold can change the body's temperature regulation, animal study suggests

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2025-04-24 01:00

Australia; International; VIC

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A study in mice suggests that the memory of being cold can change the body's metabolism and temperature regulation, even when that environment is no longer cold. The researchers put mice in a cold environment where the temperature was only 4 °C, and the mice learned to associate that environment with cold temperatures. When these mice were later returned to the same environment that was at a milder 21 °C, the mice still had a high metabolic rate and body temperature, suggesting they had changed their body's temperature regulation in response to the memory alone.