Artic Ground Squirrel (shown on right in hibernation)

The Arctic ground squirrel (AGS) is the only known mammal capable of lowering its body temperature to below freezing during hibernation. The species also tolerates prolonged periods of restricted cerebral blood flow (ischemia) with minimal neuronal cell death. This may be an evolved response to pronounced fluctuations in blood flow and metabolism associated with transitions into and out of hypothermia, as suggested by Dr. Kelly Drew at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. This distinguishes AGS from other species and emphasizes the novelty and utility of this model organism.

In order to test the hypothesis that genetic factors also contribute to ischemia tolerance in AGS, Neuronascent minimized the influence of environmental factors by preparing hippocampal neural stem cells obtained from adult Arctic ground squirrels. We found that these neural stem cells produce neurons that are less susceptible to stroke-like conditions than other neural stem cell species. The proteins that confer this tolerance to AGS neurons provide potential targets for the development of novel stroke therapeutics.

Visit the Arctic Biology Institute in Fairbanks, Alaska at http://www.iab.uaf.edu/programs.php to discover unique programs about hibernation.