Alaska scientists find out how to make squirrels hibernate

Scientists in Alaska say they have figured out how to make squirrels hibernate, a process that could be used to preserve brain function in humans who suffer strokes or heart attacks.

But the technique only worked in squirrels which were awakened by researchers during their hibern-ation season, not outside normal hibernation times, said the study in The Journal of Neuroscience.

Researchers at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, studied arctic ground squirrels, giving them a caffeine-like substance to awaken them from hibernation.

Another substance was given to them at various times of the year to see if it could stimulate parts of the brain that encourage a molecule called adenosine to attach itself to the receptors, causing sleepiness.

“When a squirrel begins to hibernate and when you feel drowsy it’s because adenosine molecules have attached themselves to receptors in your brain,” said Tulasi Jinka, lead author of the study.

Adenosine slows nerve cell activity. Animals in hibernation experience very low body temperatures and take in little oxygen, but they suffer no brain damage.