Received: 5 May, 2015 Revised: 7 September, 2015 Accepted: 14 September, 2015 Published online: 30 September, 2015 Incomplete understanding of the mechanisms responsible for induction of hibernation prevent translation of natural hibernation to its artificial counterpart. To facilitate this translation, a model was developed that identifies the necessary physiological changes for induction of a...

GALSTER, WILLIAM A., AND PETER MORRISON. Cyclic changes in carbohydrate concentrations during hibernation in the arctic ground squirrel. Am. J. Physiol. 218(4): 1228-1232. 1970.-Blood samples from right ventricular cannulas and tissues were collected from arctic ground squirrels during summer and winter. Average plasma glucose (mg/ml) and tissue glycogen (mg/g) values from ‘Cunexcited” fasted g...

The present study was designed to investigate the hypothesis that in vivo entosis is a novel pathway for eliminating spermatozoa in the seminiferous tubules (ST) during hibernation of the Chinese soft-shelled turtle. Western blot analysis revealed that the expression of LAMP1 in the testis was significantly higher during hibernation than that during non-hibernation. Immunohistochemistry reactio...

Many species hibernate to conserve energy during periods of low food and water availability. It has long been assumed that the optimal hibernation strategy involves long, deep bouts of torpor that minimize energy expenditure. However, hibernation has ecological (e.g. decreased predator avoidance) and physiological (e.g. sleep deprivation) costs that must be balanced with energy savings; therefo...

We hypothesized that depleted fat reserves in grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis) following annual hibernation would reveal increases in persistent organic pollutant (POP) concentrations compared to those present in the fall. We obtained fat and hair from British Columbia grizzly bears in early spring 2004 to compare with those collected in fall 2003, with the two tissue types providing con...

Understanding the mechanisms that protect against or limit muscle atrophy in hibernators during prolonged inactivity has important implications for its treatment. We examined whether external factors influence the pathways regulating protein synthesis and degradation, leading to muscle atrophy prevention in Daurian ground squirrels (Spermophilus dauricus). We investigated the effects of 14-day ...

OBJECTIVES This study characterizes the histology of myocardium predicted to be hibernating using three different imaging techniques to explain the discordance among them. BACKGROUND Both radionuclide and functional imaging techniques were used to assess myocardial hibernation. The former have high sensitivity and the latter high specificity for predicting functional recovery. METHODS Ninet...

Although hibernating mammals wake occasionally to eat during torpor, this period represents a state of fasting. Fasting is known to alter the gut microbiota in nonhibernating mammals; therefore, hibernation may also affect the gut microbiota. However, there are few reports of gut microbiota in hibernating mammals. The present study aimed to compare the gut microbiota in hibernating torpid Syria...