Naked Mole Rats

Naked Mole Rat.Photo Credit - The Telegraph

June 24, 2013 The Telegraph - Naked Mole Rats

Every morning I read the Wildlife Disease News Digest that more often than not contains horrible news about the latest disease killing animals around the world. Occasionally, the Digest has a section titled, Huh?! That's Interesting! where good news can be found. In today's Digest there was this article in the British newspaper, The Telegraph, that I thought was worth passing on to you. Enjoy....


Could this crazy creature help us cure cancer?

By Michael Hanlon

9:24PM BST 24 Jun 2013

The Telegraph - Science/Evolution 

The naked mole rat may look weird, but scientists have discovered it has a 'gloop’ that could lead to amazing new medicines, says Michael Hanlon

There are a few contenders for the title of “weirdest critter in the world”. There is, for example, the three-toed sloth of Central America, which plays host to an entire ecosystem, including cyanobacteria, insects and other creatures that live in its sticky green fur. Then there is the bizarre star-nosed mole, Condylura cristata, the only tentacled mammal, whose nose contains 30,000 microscopic sensory organs and which probably “sees” the world through touch. Or the mole-like Pyrenean desman, which looks like it has been put together out of random components – part rat, part mole, part shrew and part platypus.

But surely the award must go to the mysterious and curiously engaging naked mole rat, Heterocephalus glaber, which is so weird in every respect that it resembles a creature from outer space. Not only is it so unlike any other mammal that it almost seems to deserve its own category, but scientists now believe it may hold the key to curing cancer – and even, as Prof Steve Jones has mentioned before on these pages, extending the human lifespan.

Uncommonly among mammals, mole rats do not get cancer, and last week, scientists announced that they have finally discovered why. They hope the “gloop” that they have identified in the animal could, in due time, form the basis of a host of new medicines to treat not only cancer but diseases ranging from atherosclerosis to arthritis.

It seems odd that the naked mole rat could spark any kind of medical revolution. In terms of its ecology and physiology, these animals are outliers. Naked mole rats are small, almost hairless rodents, about four inches long, that live in eastern and southern Africa. They are the only known “eusocial” mammal; the structure of a mole rat colony is identical to that of hive insects such as bees, and other arthropods such as termites. There is one female, a queen, who mates with a handful of fertile males; the rest of the colony, which may number 80 or so, consists of sterile “workers”.

That is only the start of the weirdness. They are, as their name suggests, naked (or nearly so – the odd whisker sprouts from their faces). They can run backwards as fast as forwards, and can manipulate their goofy incisor teeth individually, like chopsticks. Unlike all other mammals, naked mole rats are not truly warm-blooded: they regulate their temperature in a crude fashion, more like a lizard than, say, a mouse.

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The oddities continue. Mole rats, which live off underground roots and tubers, appear not be able to feel pain, at least on their skin. The pain receptors found in all mammals – called nociceptors – are there, but they appear to be turned off, as German scientists found when they studied the way the receptors reacted to being immersed in corrosive chemicals. Douse a naked mole rat in acid, and it will not flinch. (It is finding out how these nociceptors operate that could be the key to new treatments for arthritis.) Mole rats can also survive extraordinarily high degrees of carbon dioxide, which builds up in their tunnels to levels that would kill a human in minutes. In terms of cancer, numerous studies have failed to find a single tumour in the thousands of individuals sampled.

Finally, there is the curious fact that these little rodents live for around 30 years – 10 to 20 times the lifespan of relatives such as rats and mice. For most species, there is a rough correlation between size and longevity. Big animals, the theory goes, tend to live longer because they are less likely to die quickly of cold or starvation or be eaten. Thus genes that confer health into old age can be passed on. That is why whales and giant tortoises live longer than shrews and mice. Mole rats should live a few years at most, but instead they can outlast chimpanzees.

It is, however, that resistance to cancer – which is probably related to their longevity – that has proved the most intriguing puzzle. Now, Vera Gorbunova and colleagues at the University of Rochester in New York have identified a polysaccharide – a gloopy, sugar-based natural polymer – found in naked mole rat cells that stops tumours growing. The scientists, whose study was published in the current edition of Nature, suggest that the finding “opens new avenues for cancer prevention and life-extension”.

The chemical, called high-molecular-mass hyaluronan (HMM-HA), acts as a kind of lubricant, allowing mole rats to squeeze their Plasticine-like bodies through the smallest and most convoluted tunnels: “They can virtually turn somersaults in their skin,” Chris Faulks, a scientist at Queen Mary, University of London said this week.

It seems, therefore, that the ability of HMM-HA to confer cancer resistance was a happy evolutionary accident. And one day, it may be possible to engineer the ability to produce HMM-MA in human tissues – hopefully without the side effect, as Dr Faulks says, of making us all end up looking like naked mole rats.

Of course, this isn’t the first time that an extraordinary feature in an animal has been seized on as a possible cure for human ailments. While the thesis of Dr I. William Lane’s Sharks Don’t Get Cancer, published in 1992, is now widely held to be incorrect, crocodiles have an extraordinary ability to fight off bacterial infections: injured crocs have been in bacterially infested swamps, blood pouring out of open wounds, yet remained infection-free.

Then there is one of the most intriguing findings of recent decades – that chimpanzees do not get Aids, despite being susceptible to the same group of retroviruses as humans. In fact, it is now believed that the Aids epidemic started when the virus jumped species from ape to human, probably in the forests of west Africa around 100 years ago, as a result of a hunting accident or by consumption of ape meat. While chimps can get infected by the virus, they do not go on to suffer the disease: the reason why may lurk in the one per cent of the chimp genome that differs from ours.

That we can solve medical mysteries by looking at our close cousins is not surprising; yet finding that an animal so weird, and so ugly, as the naked mole rat could one day lead to a cure for cancer seems utterly bizarre. However, this creature has gained the respect of an increasing number of scientists: robust to the point of near-indestructibility, living in perfect conflict-free communes, immune to pain and capable of spending years underground at a time, this meekest of animals could, should the apocalypse strike, be in pole position to inherit the Earth.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/evolution/10140073/Could-this-crazy-creature-help-us-cure-cancer.html

Monday Evening Festivities

I was witness to the funniest animal encounter in a long time.  Two young deer had come down from the woods to dine on the bird seed when Lola showed up from behind the storage building. Normally, the deer leave her alone, but these two youngsters had something else in mind.

As Lola ate, one of the deer sneaked up behind her. Startled, Lola ran across the yard and climbed about 10 feet up a white pine. The deer backed off and rejoined its partner. Sensing that the coast was clear, Lola turned around, scooted down the tree heading back to the food. As she walked across the yard, both deer circled around her, prancing and bucking their back legs as if to invite Lola to join in on their game. Lola wanted no part of their invitation and again scampered up the tree. This scenario repeated itself for about 15 minutes until Lola finally refused to come down. When the two deer backed off and wandered up the hillside, Lola ran and hid behind the storage building.  The deer continued to chase each other around the yard, eventually tiring and retreating back into the woods.  In time, Lola returned and finished her meal.

As much as I enjoyed watching the game, I am reminded how accepting many animals are of other species. The deer appeared to have no malicious intent except to engage Lola in their play. Lola, for her part, did not respond in anger but retreated until the deer bored of waiting for her. All of us can learn from these three and be a little more accepting and playful in our interactions with others.

Abandoned Wildlife Babies?

Wildlife Viewing - Michigan Department of Natural Resources

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Whitetail Deer Fawn - Photo Credit - Wikipedia

Now that summer is here, Michigan residents and visitors are spending more time outdoors. And every summer, they view wildlife in our state forests, parks or sometimes right in their own backyards. Remember, wildlife should be left in the wild. When you see wildlife, especially young wildlife like fawns, enjoy the moment – but don’t touch it or move it. Only licensed wildlife rehabilitators may possess wildlife; they will care for it and then release it back into the wild. 

Finding Fawns in Michigan

Michigan DNR Press Release - Published on Jun 17, 2013

http://www.michigan.gov/wildlife - Have you ever come across a fawn that you thought was abandoned? Finding lone fawns during the spring and summer is a very common occurrence in Michigan, and in this video, Katie Keen explains why there is no need to worry. If you come across a lone fawn, enjoy the moment, but please leave wildlife in the wild.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Press Release

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 21, 2013

Contact:  Katie Keen, 231-775-9727 or Mary Dettloff, 517-335-3014

To prevent bear problems, remove all food sources

It might be hard to believe black bears see a bird feeder as food source, but they do. Bird feeders, garbage cans and barbeque grills are all bear attractants that humans can control.

Food, mating, and young bears establishing their own territories are all reasons bears are more noticeable right now. Bears typically mate in June or July, and the mother will kick out her yearlings in order to do so.

"Bears are looking for food and new territory," said DNR bear and furbearer specialist Adam Bump. "While we might not think of bird feeders and trash cans as food sources, a hungry bear certainly may.

"The majority of complaints we receive about nuisance bears involve a food source. The easiest thing people can do to avoid creating a problem is to take in their bird feeders and store other attractants – like grills, trash cans and pet food – in a garage or storage shed."

Bird seed is especially attractive to bears because of its high fat content and ease of access. Once bird feeders are discovered, bears will keep coming back until the seed is gone or the feeders have been removed. Bears are capable of remembering reliable food sources from year to year.

Bears that are rewarded with food each time they visit a yard can become habituated to man-made food sources. This can create an unsafe situation for the bear and become a nuisance for landowners if a bear continuously visits their yard during the day and repeatedly destroys private property in search of food.

Those who have taken appropriate actions to remove food sources for a period of two to three weeks, but are not seeing results, should contact the nearest DNR office and speak with a wildlife biologist or technician for further assistance.

For more information about bears go to www.michigan.gov/bear.

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The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is committed to the conservation, protection, management, use and enjoyment of the state’s natural and cultural resources for current and future generations. For more information, go to www.michigan.gov/dnr.

Hawksbill Turtle - Photo Credit - World Wildlife Fund

Happy Summer Solstice!!! To celebrate this day, learn more about the Hawksbill Turtle on the World Wildlife Fund's website.


http://worldwildlife.org/species/hawksbill-turtle?fs&enews=enews1306t&utm_source=enews-wwf&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=wwf-marketing&utm_content=june2013

Lola Returns

It’s been more than a year since I last saw Lola. For most of May and June of 2012, Lola had religiously visited my home each night. Sitting in the middle of my black food dish, she consumed large quantities of corn and sunflower seeds. With each new visit, Lola allowed me to come ever closer to photograph her. The last time I saw her, Lola had brought her three young babies with her. As she ate, the three frolicked behind the storage building. After that evening, Lola and her family disappeared. I had feared that something nasty had happened to them.

So when I found her peering around the corner of the storage building last night, I was overjoyed. Lola has put on weight since her last visit but her behavior has remained the same. She hides under the storage building until the coast is clear. Then quietly sneaks around the corner of the building and across the trail to the food. Last night she was joined by a young deer and a black squirrel. As there was plenty to eat, all three dined peacefully and without conflict.

I am so happy to see that she has survived another year and hopefully, I will get the chance to welcome her new babies to my backyard wildlife family.

Squirrels that can fly?

Southern Flying Squirrel - Photo Credit: Wikipedia

I received this post from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources on Michigan's two flying squirrels: the Northern and Southern Flying Squirrels. If you haven't seen a flying squirrel in person, they are adorable. I had the opportunity to raise several litters of Southern Flying Squirrels and they are pretty amazing animals. Their fur is silky soft and once they develop their gliding abilities, they are virtually impossible to catch. Enjoy the article and check out the links.

Squirrels that can fly?

A well travelled pig

Wendell vacationing on Neebish Island

I haven’t written much about Mr. Wendell, my orange and white guinea pig. In a household of eleven noisy cats, one can often forget about the little guy in the family room cage. But in my world, there is something rather special about Mr. Wendell.  For one, he cooperates with his grooming. Unlike the other pigs that have lived here, Wendell allows me to trim his claws without fear of being bitten. He also understands Japanese; no small feat considering how poor a speaker I am. I welcome him each morning with an Ohayo gozaimasu, genki desu ka. Asagohan wo tabemasu ka. Ninjin?? (Translation – Good morning, how are you?  Have you eaten breakfast? Carrot??)

 But what makes Mr. Wendell so very special is how well travelled he is. Finding a guinea pig sitter is no easy task. The retired couple who had cared for him had decided that the daily chore of cleaning his cage had become too much for them. So I decided that whenever I had to go out of town, Mr. Wendell would come with me. I furnished a small plastic cat carrier with food and water dishes with a thick towel on the floor. A separate tote carries his pig food, timothy, a quart of water and bedding supplies. I found a small play pen at the local pet store that I connect with zip ties to the bolts on his carrier. Voila!! A portable mobile pig home.

Wendell has seen more of the state than most animals. He has spent a week’s vacation in Ypsilanti at the home of his cousin Leo, the Italian Greyhound; weekends with cousins Bixby and Sophie, a pair of Yorkiepoos. He has ridden the Neebish Island Ferry to vacation at the Birchtree Cottages and camped at Lightfoot Bay.  He is even welcomed at my parents’ home in the U.P., an invitation that would never be extended to his feline friends.

With the arrival of summer now, Wendell and I will once again hit the road. With his mobile home safely buckled into the back seat, off Wendell and I will go on our next adventure.