Article
Pathology
Naka Okumura, Rina Takei, Hirotaka Kondo, Hisashi Shibuya
Summary: This study examined the morphology of 58 apocrine tumors in 31 domestic Richardson's ground squirrels and compared tumor subtypes with clinical information and histological findings. The majority of the tumors were apocrine adenocarcinomas, with the cystic papillary and micropapillary invasive types being the most common. There were correlations between tumor subtypes and tumor diameter, nuclear atypia, tumor margins, vascular invasion, and PAS positivity.
VETERINARY PATHOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Physiology
Nisred K. Klichkhanov, Elena R. Nikitina, Zainab M. Shihamirova, Maria D. Astaeva, Shamil I. Chalabov, Aleksandr I. Krivchenko
Summary: Small ground squirrels exhibit low levels of ROS and RNS production during hibernation, while oxidative stress increases during arousal, but decreases as body temperature recovers.
FRONTIERS IN PHYSIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biology
Stuart R. Green, Kenneth B. Storey
Summary: This study investigates the regulation of citrate synthase in the muscle tissue of a small mammalian hibernator by comparing functional and structural properties. The results show that citrate synthase is inhibited in the ground squirrel skeletal muscle during hibernation, possibly mediated by decreases in succinylation. This inhibition is reflected in the enzyme activity and levels of lysine succinylation.
Article
Veterinary Sciences
Yoshinori Takami, Yumi Une
Summary: This study surgically treated three Richardson's ground squirrels with dyspnea and maxillary pseudo-odontomas, resulting in immediate improvement of dyspnea post-surgery and no recurrence in one case 600 days later, demonstrating the effectiveness of the procedure for treating maxillary pseudo-odontomas in these squirrels.
JOURNAL OF ZOO AND WILDLIFE MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Denis Goncharov, Richard Policht, Lucie Hambalkova, Viktor Salovarov, Vlastimil Hart
Summary: The study found individual variation in wideband alarms and whistle alarms of the long-tailed ground squirrel, demonstrating the presence of individual characteristics in both types of alarm calls. This discovery opens up new possibilities for research in the field of psychology.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Haolin Zhang, Pengyu Chen, Yuxin Liu, Wenqian Xie, Sijie Fan, Yuchen Yao, Yingying Han, Zhengrong Yuan, Qiang Weng
Summary: This study found that testosterone can be converted to estrogen in the prostate of wild ground squirrels, which affects the function of the prostate gland. The conversion process is likely catalyzed by the enzyme P450arom produced by stromal cells, and regulated by locally expressed estrogen receptors. These findings are important for understanding the seasonal regulation mechanisms in the prostate of wild ground squirrels.
JOURNAL OF STEROID BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Zoology
Ryan J. Fisher, Ashley N. Vass, Christopher M. Somers, Ray G. Poulin
Summary: This study found that Richardson's ground squirrels were most likely to occur in areas with moderate amounts of grassland (approximately 30%), areas developed by humans (>30%), and a high proportion of clay loam soils, presumably for burrowing. This highlights the importance of heterogeneous landscapes and suggests that areas disturbed by humans may provide suitable vegetation structure for ground squirrels.
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF ZOOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rongrong Yin, Jie Zhang, Shenhui Xu, Yong Kong, Huiping Wang, Yunfang Gao
Summary: The study found that iron levels were lower in the femur and liver of torpid squirrels, with bone formation and resorption balanced and no iron overload observed. This may be a potential mechanism for hibernators to avoid disuse-induced bone loss.
COMPARATIVE BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY B-BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Zoology
Maria Kachamakova, Yordan Koshev, Eva Millesi
Summary: The European ground squirrel is an endangered rodent inhabiting open grasslands in central and southeastern Europe, and conservation efforts are being made. Research shows that relocated ground squirrels had decreased glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations post-release, while resident squirrels had higher concentrations, suggesting lower stress levels in the relocated individuals.
Article
Zoology
Yue Ren, Shiyi Song, Xinyu Liu, Ming Yang
Summary: Seasonal hibernation in female Daurian ground squirrels leads to changes in behavior, morphology, and metabolism, with high food intake, fat deposition, and body mass increases during fattening compared to hibernation. The levels of serum glucose and triglycerides were higher during fattening, and adiponectin levels were different between fattening and hibernation, suggesting a role in preventing heterotopic fat accumulation and facilitating metabolic switch.
INTEGRATIVE ZOOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Shen-Hui Xu, Wei-Wei Fu, Jie Zhang, Hui-Ping Wang, Kai Dang, Hui Chang, Yun-Fang Gao
Summary: The study findings suggest that Daurian ground squirrels may employ different antioxidant strategies in different skeletal muscles during hibernation, influenced by the regulation of PGC-1α and FOXO1 expression. Differential fuel metabolism regulation, possibly enhancing lipid oxidation or maintaining anaerobic glycolysis, could play a role in the formation of antioxidant defense strategies in different types of skeletal muscle fibers.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rafael Dai Pra, Sarah M. Mohr, Dana K. Merriman, Sviatoslav N. Bagriantsev, Elena O. Gracheva
Summary: Adequate nutrition is crucial for normal reproductive function. Despite being in a state of undernutrition and significant weight loss, ground squirrels initiate reproductive maturation during their intermittent awakenings in hibernation.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yuting Han, Weilan Miao, Ziwei Hao, Ning An, Yingyu Yang, Ziwen Zhang, Jiayu Chen, Kenneth B. Storey, Etienne Lefai, Hui Chang
Summary: This study investigated the protective mechanisms involved in vascular ischemia-reperfusion injury during the torpor-arousal cycle in Daurian ground squirrels. The results showed that during the interbout-arousal period, there was a decrease in oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory factors, as well as an increase in anti-inflammatory factors, which induced controlled phenotypic switching of thoracic aortic smooth muscle cells and restoration of endothelial permeability.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Physiology
Michael D. Treat, Anthony J. Marlon, Frank van Breukelen
Summary: This study investigated apoptosis in hibernating golden-mantled ground squirrels. Despite a ~2-fold increase in active Caspase 3, widespread apoptosis was not observed. The cleavage of downstream Caspase 3 targets, such as ICAD and PARP, did not increase during hibernation.
PHYSIOLOGICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL ZOOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Physiology
Yuhan Wang, Ruting Su, Pinxuan Liu, Zhengrong Yuan, Yingying Han, Haolin Zhang, Qiang Weng
Summary: By studying the seasonal changes in mitochondria in the testis of wild ground squirrels, it was found that mitochondrial autophagy and oxidative stress may be involved in the regulation of seasonal reproduction; during the breeding season, mitochondrial-related genes were differentially expressed, key mitophagy factors were highly expressed, and the abundance and enzymatic activities of antioxidative enzymes were decreased, indicating an important role of mitochondria in seasonal reproduction.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY-REGULATORY INTEGRATIVE AND COMPARATIVE PHYSIOLOGY
(2021)