Hibernation in mammals is a seasonal state of metabolic suppression and dormancy characterized by a decrease in body temperature to survive extreme environmental stresses. Small hibernators such as 13-lined ground squirrels use this remarkable strategy to survive extreme environmental stresses like cold and restricted food supply.
Product: A new iPSC line from the neural precursor cells of wild type thirteen-lined ground squirrel (Spermophilus tridecemlineatus).
Use: This ground squirrel iPSC line can be differentiated into many different cell types for hibernation studies, disease modeling, and drug screening for neuronal injuries or other diseases
Competitive Advantage: This is the first iPSC line established from small hibernators like ground squirrel. These lines are useful in generating various cell types and tissue models for in-depth mechanistic studies of hibernation and coldness tolerance in vitro.
iPSCs from a Hibernator Provide a Platform for Studying Cold Adaptation and Its Potential Medical Applications Cell. 2018 May 3;173(4):851-863.e16. https://youtu.be/h-9DNX7urgE
For licensing: E-059-2017
Inventors: Jingxing Ou (NEI), Wei Lei (NEI)