Branco Weiss Fellow Since
2024
Research Category
Neuroscience, Biochemistry, Data Science
Research Location
Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, USA
Background
Hibernation is one of the most fascinating and intriguing evolutionary adaptations in warm-blooded mammals. Hibernating animals employe a collection of flexible physiological adaptations that allow them to survive in extreme environmental conditions and food scarcity by significantly reducing their metabolic rates and lowering their body temperature. How do hibernating animals accomplish this? We have a very limited understanding of mechanisms through which they achieve these physiological states. Mechanistic understanding of hibernation should allow us to reap wide ranging benefit of hibernation in medicine and beyond. These yet to be identified mechanisms holds the potential to revolutionize how we treat some of the most challenging medical conditions of our times from stokes, ischemia-reperfusion injury to extending the timespan of human organ for transplantation to possible application in human space travel.
Details of Research
The aim of Dr. Neeraj Lal’s research is to understand neural and molecular mechanism that regulate hibernation in multiple species of animals in extreme environmental condition of arctic circle. He will use a multidisciplinary approach combining cutting edge biochemical, systems neuroscience tools with mathematical modeling and AI-guided data science tools to understand how changes in blood/CSF metabolites, secreted hormones and brain circuit orchestrate these phenomenal physiological states. He hypothesized that activation of particular neural circuits aided by secreted factor initiates the hibernation process. To test the role of brain circuits and secreted factors, Dr. Lal will use cutting edge systems neuroscience tools coupled with AI-guided data science pipelines he has developed in the past few years to understand the mechanisms of hibernation.
