I’m excited to announce our latest publication, which details how naked mole-rats turn off non-shivering thermogenesis in intrascapular brown adipose tissue to save energy in hypoxia. Our study demonstrates that not only are naked mole-rats heterothermic, but that they can rapidly modulate heat production in hypoxia via a novel mechanism that decreases expression of the key thermogenic protein UCP1. Furthermore, similar changes were observed in other social mole-rat species but not a solitary species, suggesting this adaptation may have evolved preferentially in social rodents.

This work was funded by a National Geographic Explorers Grant and was the result of an exciting collaboration with Dr. Nigel Bennett of the University of Pretoria, Glenn Tattersall of Brock University, and Mary-Ellen Harper and Baptiste Lacoste of uOttawa.

Read the full study here: https://rdcu.be/cBR7d

Read a commentary here:

https://tattersalllab.com/2021/11/24/naked-mole-rats-rapidly-decrease-ucp1-in-hypoxia/ 

Read some press coverage here:

https://thefulcrum.ca/sciencetech/u-of-o-professor-studies-hypoxia-tolerance-in-naked-mole-rats/

https://todayuknews.com/health/hypoxia-tolerance-naked-mole-rats-may-provide-secret-to-low-oxygen-survival/

https://floridanewstimes.com/the-naked-mole-rat-may-provide-the-secret-of-hypoxic-survival/382511/

https://medicalxpress.com/visualstories/2021-11-hypoxia-tolerance-naked-mole-rats-secret.amp