Microvascular circulation at cool, normal and warm temperatures in rat leg muscles examined by histochemistry using Lycopersicon esculentum lectin

Local cooling and/or warming of the body are widely used for therapy. For safer and more effective therapy, microvascular hemodynamics needs to be clarified. To examine blood circulation in rat leg muscles at 20, 30, 37 and 40 °C, fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled Lycopersicon esculentum lectin was injected into the cardiac ventricle. Endothelial cells of open and functioning blood vessels were labeled by this lectin for 3 min and detected by immunostaining for lectin. The percentage of open and functioning capillaries of leg muscles by the avidin–biotin method was 89.8 ± 3.3% at 37 °C, while capillaries were unclear or unstained at 20 and 30 °C, probably due to a decrease of blood flow. The results using the tyramide–dinitrophenol method were 58.6 ± 15.0% at 20 °C, 68.5 ± 12.3% at 30 °C, 83.8 ± 5.7% at 37 °C and 83.3 ± 7.8% at 40 °C. The value at 20 °C was significantly different from those at 37 and 40 °C. The results by the tyramide–biotin method were 85.5 ± 5.3% at 20 °C, 87.3 ± 9.7% at 30 °C, 94.7 ± 3.6% at 37 °C and 92.5 ± 2.1% at 40 °C. Based on these results, it was concluded that the blood flow of each capillary considerably decreased at 20 and 30 °C and probably increased at 40 °C, whereas the proportion of open and functioning capillaries was essentially unchanged.