The naked mole-rat probably wouldn’t win a beauty contest, with its hairless, pink and wrinkled skin, but the animal has other interesting assets. It is particularly resistant to time, disease and lack of oxygen. Something to interest scientists to draw inspiration from this model of longevity.
While man does not survive more than ten minutes if he is deprived of oxygen, the naked mole-rat has no sequelae after a total deprivation of 18 minutes, and can lead his life normally for five hours in an atmosphere low oxygen. The rodent actually uses fructose instead of glucose to create and provide energy to the organs, including the most important, the heart and the brain, thus ensuring their normal functioning. A very practical system for this small animal which roams narrow underground galleries all day long, surrounded by hundreds of congeners, which also consume the little oxygen present underground.
An animal that never ages
While the mouse, of the same size, rarely exceeds two years of life, the naked mole-rat often reaches thirty springs, thus attesting to an extraordinary longevity. According to Frédéric Saldmann interviewed by franceinfo, “his arteries do not age, his brain does not age”. It also remains capable of reproducing throughout its life. His secret: iron health. The mole rat is a solid, resistant to three serious diseases in humans: cancer, neurodegenerative diseases and cardiovascular diseases. Only two cases of cancer have been recorded, only on animals living in captivity. According to a 2013 study, this immune resistance could be due to a high concentration of hyaluronic acid in the organism of the mole rat. Icing on the cake, the rodent would not feel the pain. Enough to make it a privileged object of study for researchers, who are trying to unravel its mysteries in the hope of improving human health and longevity.
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