Biochemistry of Non-shivering Thermogenesis in Vertebrates: Evolutionary Perspectives

This comprehensive reference book covers non-shivering thermogenesis, metabolic rates, and associated diseases. It emphasizes the phylogenetic relations of vertebrate non-shivering thermogenesis (NST) and its evolutionary significance. The book describes how the incidence of metabolic syndromes has reached epidemic levels worldwide due to dysregulation in energy balance. Chapters include the evolution and regulatory mechanisms of NSTs. It covers the role of NST in birds and wild animals, and muscle adaptation during hibernation. The book is meant for researchers and students of biochemistry, molecular medicine, and physiology. It is also useful to physicians and health care professionals.

Key Features:

•  Provides in-depth insights on topics related to metabolic rate regulation and thermogenesis
•  Covers the evolution of tachymetabolism and endothermy among vertebrates
•  Analyzes the evolutionary perspectives of non-shivering thermogenesis in different organisms
•  Discusses the evolution of brown adipose tissue and non-shivering thermogenesis in mammals
•  Provides graphs, flowcharts, and descriptive figures for easy understanding of concepts

Dr. Naresh Chandra Bal

Associate Professor

KIIT School of Biotechnology

Bhubaneswar, Odisha

Dr. Bal has more than 15 years of research experience in muscle and brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis. He also possesses more than 20 years of teaching experience in physiology and biochemistry related subjects at different levels. He has designed and performed studies on several transgenic mouse models using manipulation of thermogenic capacities of both the sites: BAT and muscle. In addition to these transgenic models he has also employed other strategies such as pharmacological, surgical and diet-intervention to address questions related to thermogenesis, especially non-shivering thermogenesis (NST). Dr. Bal has authored more than 30 manuscripts on this topic including top-tier journals such as Nature Medicine, Trends in Endocrinology and Metabolism, Biological Reviews, Journal of Biological Chemistry (JBC), and Biochemical Journal. He has published 60 journal articles in total and his papers have been cited by top researchers in the field from all over the world. Currently, his H-index is 30 with total citation of more than 3000. For his pioneering research, Dr. Bal has been awarded with several honors including Physiological Genomics Fellowship, American Physiological Society (APS), USA; K01 Award from National Institutes of Health (NIH), USA; Ramalingaswami Re-entry Fellowship, Government of India; and Early Career Research Award, Government of India. He serves as associate editor in Frontiers in Physiology and editor in Metabolites & Molecular Medicine Reports. Due to his scientific contribution he has been elected as the Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology, UK.

Ms. Punyadhara Pani

Senior Research Fellow

KIIT School of Biotechnology

Bhubaneswar, Odisha

Ms. Punyadhara Pani is currently working in the laboratory of Dr. Bal in delineating molecular mechanisms of muscle non-shivering thermogenesis (NST) in birds. She completed her bachelor's degree from Utkal University and master's from Ravenshaw University with Summa-cum-Laude. She served as a teacher and taught undergraduate students for about five years. Due to her excellent academic distinctions, she has been awarded with one of the most competitive pre-doctoral research funding called DST-Inspire Fellowship from the Government of India. She is admirable in writing and has won first prize in several state-level competitions. She designed and developed her manuscripts which have been published in several renowned journals including Biological Reviews, Biochemical Journal, among others. Moreover, Ms. Pani has successfully presented her work in the form of poster and oral presentations in both national and international conferences for which she has received recognition and awards. She has done extensive research on skeletal muscle adaptation to environmental factors, pharmacological agents and cytokines leading to several recent publications in internationally reputed journals. For these studies, she has used different animal models including mammalian and avian providing biochemical/genetic insight for NST in the muscle.