• DVM360_Conference_Charlotte,NC_banner
  • ACVCACVC
  • DVM 360
  • Fetch DVM 360Fetch DVM 360
DVM 360
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care
By Role
AssociatesOwnersPractice ManagerStudentsTechnicians
Subscriptions
dvm360 Newsletterdvm360 Magazine
News
All News
Association
Breaking News
Conference Coverage
Education
Equine
FDA
Law & Ethics
Market Trends
Medical
Politics
Products
Recalls
Regulatory
Digital Media
dvm360 LIVE!™
Expert Interviews
The Vet Blast Podcast
Medical World News
Pet Connections
The Dilemma Live
Vet Perspectives™
Weekly Newscast
dvm360 Insights™
Publications
All Publications
dvm360
Firstline
Supplements
Vetted
Clinical
All Clinical
Anesthesia
Animal Welfare
Behavior
Cardiology
CBD in Pets
Dentistry
Dermatology
Diabetes
Emergency & Critical Care
Endocrinology
Equine Medicine
Exotic Animal Medicine
Feline Medicine
Gastroenterology
Imaging
Infectious Diseases
Integrative Medicine
Nutrition
Oncology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain Management
Parasitology
Pharmacy
Surgery
Toxicology
Urology & Nephrology
Virtual Care
Business
All Business
Business & Personal Finance
Hospital Design
Personnel Management
Practice Finances
Practice Operations
Wellbeing & Lifestyle
Continuing Education
Conferences
Conference Listing
Conference Proceedings
Resources
CBD in Pets
CE Requirements by State
Contests
Veterinary Heroes
Partners
Spotlight Series
Team Meeting in a Box
Toolkit
Top Recommended Veterinary Products
Vet to Vet
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Advertisement
By Role
  • Associates
  • Owners
  • Practice Manager
  • Students
  • Technicians
Subscriptions
  • dvm360 Newsletter
  • dvm360 Magazine
  • Contact Us
  • Fetch DVM360 Conference
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • About Us
  • MJHLS Brand Logo

© 2023 MJH Life Sciences™ and dvm360 | Veterinary News, Veterinarian Insights, Medicine, Pet Care. All rights reserved.

Bear kidneys may hold key to new veterinary treatments

June 17, 2015

No urination during hibernation wrecks kidneysbut ursine organ regenerates.

Getty ImagesScientists at the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, are studying the kidney of the American black bear (Ursus americanus) to see if they can learn how it functions-and, hopefully, use what they discover to develop new treatments for kidney disease.

“Black bears go into hibernation in the fall with healthy kidneys,” says Ron Korstanje, PhD, a researcher at the Jackson Laboratory, in an article on the Jackson Laboratory website. “They don't urinate during hibernation, and by the time spring arrives, their kidneys are damaged and have lost most of their function.”

At that point, the bears' kidneys appear to regenerate themselves, returning to normal function during the spring and summer. “How does that happen?” Korstanje asks. “And if we figure that out, can we come up with treatments that can prevent or reverse kidney damage?”

Korstanje has distributed a number of kits to bear hunters in the region (Maine has a 16-week bear hunting season in the fall). Participants collect kidney samples from the bears they hunt and mail them back to the lab. “We expected to get maybe a dozen kits back, and we've received about 40 samples, which also include some basic information from the hunters about the bears such as gender and approximate weight and age,” Korstanje says.

Advertisement

Gary Striker, PhD, a nephrologist at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, New York, is an expert renal pathologist. He examines and scores the samples, which helps Korstanje's team establish a rough timeline for kidney recovery and some estimation on the impact of age and sex.

The researchers also collaborate with Rita Seger, MD, PhD, of the University of Maine Animal and Veterinary Sciences Department, who studies bone and kidney metabolism of hibernating bears. Seger's team has provided liver samples from a bear, which Korstanje's team will use to extract DNA and ultimately assemble the world's first complete black bear genome.

Then, to see which genes are expressed at different seasons of the black bear's year, Korstanje will examine RNA samples taken from bear kidneys in the first weeks after hibernation, others from when regeneration appears to begin and others from before fall hibernation.

Korstanje says that if his lab can identify the black bear genes that have higher expression during the kidney-regeneration process, they can look into making gene expression more “bear-like,” with the ultimate goal of identifying potential drug targets for kidney patients.

Related Content:

MedicalBreaking News
Traditional and holistic treatments for giardia
Traditional and holistic treatments for giardia
3 Must-reads for National Poison Prevention Week
3 Must-reads for National Poison Prevention Week
UC Davis study on eye diseases in kittens
UC Davis study on eye diseases in kittens

Advertisement

Latest News

News wrap-up: This week’s headlines, plus dvm360® launches its first CE podcast

Educating clients on brachycephalic breeds

Viticus group seeks applications for veterinary boot camp scholarship

Unusual parasite strain kills 4 California sea otters

View More Latest News
Advertisement