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from the rising-sun-ignored-in-the-land-of-the-rising-sun dept.
Scientists in Japan have successfully triggered a hypometabolic (hibernation like) state in rodents, which do not normally hibernate.
Hibernation isn't simply prolonged sleep. When food gets scarce and winter approaches, hibernating animals begin to slow down their metabolism and drop their body temperature. During their prolonged slumber, hibernating animals quiet their brains and slow their heart rate and breathing.
[...] Mice don't hibernate in the wild. But in the lab, researchers were able to coax mice into a hibernation-like state by activating a type of brain cell called Q neurons.
"The mice exhibited distinctive qualities that met the criteria for hibernation," Takeshi Sakurai, researcher at the University of Tsukuba, said in a news release. "In particular, the body temperature set-point lowered from about 96.8 degrees Fahrenheit to about 81 degrees Fahrenheit, and the body functioned normally to maintain a lower body temperature around 71.6 degrees Fahrenheit, even when the surrounding ambient temperature was dramatically reduced."
The low energy state was also successfully induced in rats -- which neither hibernate nor experience daily torpor -- and was maintained for a week with lowered heart rates, body temperature, respiration and oxygen consumption.
Researchers say the experiment suggests it's possible humans possess Q neurons, or comparable brain cells, that could be manipulated to trigger a hibernation-like state.
If the research turns out to be applicable to humans, possible uses include medical transport, lengthy space flights, and treatment of severe pneumonia and other oxygenation affecting diseases.
Journal Reference:
Tohru M. Takahashi, Genshiro A. Sunagawa, Shingo Soya, et al. A discrete neuronal circuit induces a hibernation-like state inrodents, Nature (DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2163-6)
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 14 2020, @07:06PM (1 child)
Just in time to put me in suspended animation for the rest of 2020.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday June 15 2020, @04:18PM
In 2016, my wife, and daughter (who at that time still lived at home) had arranged to be in Disney World on election night. It seemed like it would be one of the safest places to be if riots broke out.
When trying to solve a problem don't ask who suffers from the problem, ask who profits from the problem.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 14 2020, @07:15PM (1 child)
They're pining for the fjords... Norwegian Blue Mice are known for this behavior. (Reference: Palin, M., et al., Identifying States of Immobility in the Norwegian Blue.)
(Score: 1) by RandomFactor on Sunday June 14 2020, @08:58PM
Nailed it.
В «Правде» нет известий, в «Известиях» нет правды
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 14 2020, @07:27PM
found that democrats suffer from a hyperhypometabolic state.
(Score: 4, Touché) by rigrig on Sunday June 14 2020, @07:59PM
Somehow I get the feeling that the scientists actually measured a drop in temperature from "about 36°C" to "22°C", and the conversion to Freedom Units was done by some journalist...
No one remembers the singer.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by looorg on Sunday June 14 2020, @09:25PM (5 children)
Isn't this what would make the prison-industrial-complex salivate. They could just stack them like cattle (ok in some cases that might not be all to different from today), no need to feed them anything but some kind of water-saline-suger solutions and you can really cut down on the amount of guards you need around.
Next stop Demolition man and the three seashells problem ...
(Score: 3, Informative) by Michael on Monday June 15 2020, @12:22AM (4 children)
Probably not, because that defeats the purpose of the prison-industrial-complex - a drop in replacement for the traditional form of slavery.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 15 2020, @05:32AM (3 children)
How the fuck do you get slavery from feeding and housing people contributing nothing? What, they make license plates or something? Big fucking woob-di-doo, those plates would be done much more efficiently by machines, so it's definately is not slavery.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 15 2020, @08:10PM (1 child)
And what about the prisons that have inmates picking cotton, working in call centers, and doing other contracted work for far below minimum wage?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 19 2020, @02:26AM
You are not catching my drift. Not only would many of those jobs been done much better by non convicts/machines, it's a balance between punishment, integrating them to society and paying back.
Why the hell should they get the same as many people outside, that have done nothing and have to pay for rent, food and transportation etc?
Are you trying to integrate them in society or do you want them to sit on their asses just playing their criminal games, taking drugs, learning more tricks of the trade and have gang wars inside?
It's not slavery.
US way of having private corporations making profit is a huge, serious problem imho, but it's a separate problem.
(Score: 2) by rondon on Tuesday June 16 2020, @02:13AM
The US Constitutional amendment outlawing slavery specifically omits enslaving of jailed people. Hence, the "voluntary" work crews run by many prisons, and the "volunteer" firefighters in California who can't get released for good behavior because they are needed for the state to fight fires for free.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 16 2020, @03:39PM
… I could have told you that when Q is followed peoples brains appear to hibernate!