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submitted 7 months ago by fossilesque@mander.xyz to c/science_memes@mander.xyz

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[-] dogsoahC@lemm.ee 56 points 7 months ago

Immune response isn't controlled by the brain tho.

[-] nxdefiant@startrek.website 35 points 7 months ago

I'm pretty sure there's a shiny bead in your brain that regulates your temperature. Keep in mind, all my knowledge on this subject comes from Osmosis Jones.

[-] dogsoahC@lemm.ee 11 points 7 months ago

AFAIK (undergrad biology), immune cells release signal molecules that cause temperature increase, more or less localized and wholly independent from the nervous system.

[-] DrRatso@lemmy.ml 9 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

The reason you experience the chills when you spike a fever is the brain sets the desired temperature higher and as a result you perceive cold at your current body temperature. And also why you feel like you are in a sauna when your fever breaks, because the inverse is true.

To be clear this set point does mean induction of peripheral actions to actually elevate the temperature, but the central component of this symphony is the hypothalamus.

There is a lot of uncertainty around fever signaling, here is a great summary of what we know.