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Fig. 5. Metabolic rates (in W) of mammalian cells in vivo (blue line) and
cultured in vitro (red line) plotted as a function of organism mass
(Mb in g) on a log-log scale. While still in the body and
constrained by vascular supply networks cellular metabolic rates scale as
Mb-1/4. When cells are removed from the body
and cultured in vitro, their metabolic rates converge to a constant
value predicted by theory (West et al.,
2002b). The two lines meet at the mass of the smallest mammal (the
shrew with mass 
1 g, as predicted). Figure taken from West et al.
(2002b) with permission.
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