(This project was completed with COBRE funding in June 2024.)
PI: Vadim Fedorov, PhD
Fedorov’s research investigated post-transcriptional gene regulation in hibernating Arctic ground squirrels and black bears to identify mechanisms for maintaining muscle mass during prolonged inactivity. His findings show that anabolic processes are activated in Arctic ground squirrels during hibernation, preserving muscle despite fasting and inactivity. Moreover, an increased expression of protein biosynthesis genes was found at both transcriptional and translational levels. Extending this work to black bears, Fedorov discovered similar findings from large-scale gene expression profiling revealing transcriptional changes related to branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), suggesting increased protein biosynthesis and decreased catabolism contribute to muscle maintenance during hibernation. Fedorov’s results provide insights into metabolic and signaling pathways that prevent muscle loss during hibernation for the Arctic ground squirrel and black bear and could potentially inform new treatments for muscle loss in humans.