Our Innovations in basic research: enabling continuous, reliable and precise core body temperature monitoring
Core body temperature is a complex variable whose value at any given moment results from the interaction between endogenous regulation mechanisms and external influences. This fundamental physiological parameter plays a major role in maintaining the body’s proper functioning. Through various thermoregulation processes, the body continuously works to keep its core body temperature stable while maintaining its circadian rhythm, all while adapting to an individual’s behavior and environment.
In basic research, temperature monitoring is a key parameter frequently measured when evaluating the impact of a variable on biological processes such as metabolism, immune response, physical and cognitive performance, thermal stress, acclimatization, enzymatic activity, and circadian rhythms.
A thorough understanding of temperature variations and reliable monitoring are essential for studying thermoregulation mechanisms, validating collected data, enabling meaningful comparisons between studies and advancing knowledge of human physiology.
A continuous, reliable, precise, and non-invasive measurement of core body temperature is crucial to ensure the success of research protocols and the achievement of study objectives across multiple disciplines in basic research.
Thermoregulation
The hypothalamus is the central regulator of core temperature, ensuring fluctuations remain within a target range to maintain enzymatic reactions and cellular processes.
When the body fails to maintain homeothermy, it can experience:
– Hypothermia, which slows metabolism, disrupts cardiovascular and respiratory functions, and affects the central nervous system.
– Hyperthermia, which can lead to protein denaturation, posing severe risks to cellular and organ function.
Regulating core body temperature is essential for maintaining homeostasis. A variety of behavioral and autonomic mechanisms interact to stabilize core body temperature. The complexity of heat production and dissipation, both at rest and during exercise, makes temperature monitoring a critical variable in many research protocols.
Circadian rhythms & sleep
Continuous core body temperature monitoring enables researchers to track temperature changes and assess circadian rhythms, providing a crucial tool for analyzing sleep and diagnosing circadian or sleep disorders.
The daily fluctuation of core body temperature is considered as an individual marker of circadian rhythm, characterized by 24-hour biological cycles that regulate sleep-wake cycles, hormone release and physiological functions.
Thanks to the circadian clock, melatonin secretion begins in the evening, coinciding with a decrease in core temperature, which facilitates sleep onset. Deep sleep typically occurs early in the night when core body temperature drops, then transitions to lighter sleep and REM sleep as temperature reaches its lowest point before rising again toward morning.
During the day, body temperature gradually increases, with cognitive performance peaking in the late morning and physical performance in the late afternoon.
A continuous core body temperature data collection allows researchers to analyze temperature variations and characterize circadian rhythms, making it a valuable tool for sleep analysis and diagnosing circadian or sleep disorders.
Immune response
Core body temperature is closely linked to immune function, with fever being a natural response to infection, creating an unfavorable environment for pathogens.
In immunology research protocols, core body temperature monitoring is often used as a key biomarker to assess the timing and intensity of the body’s response to infection or inflammation.
A continuous, reliable, and precise core body temperature monitoring system enables researchers to distinguish immune responses from other causes of temperature fluctuations.
Metabolism & enzymatic function
In metabolic studies, whether related to obesity, energy balance, or caloric restriction, accurate core body temperature monitoring is essential.
Monitoring core body temperature variations helps differentiate between:
– Natural metabolic changes due to environmental adaptation or biological rhythms.
– Metabolic variations caused by experimental interventions (diet, physical activity, etc.).
Core body temperature measurement is critical for assessing how specific conditions or substances influence energy expenditure. Additionally, enzyme activity is temperature dependent. Fluctuations in core temperature can significantly impact enzymatic function and, in turn, cellular function.
In pharmacology and molecular biology research, understanding core body temperature variations helps interpret how active ingredients and experimental treatments affect enzymatic processes, ensuring observed changes are due to the treatment rather than natural thermal instability.
