RUI: Ion Channels in Hypoxia and Hypothermia

许多脊椎动物的承受能力 环境条件完全不符合 几个世纪以来，人类生活一直吸引着科学家和外行人。我们 现在知道，一些鱼类，两栖动物（即青蛙幼虫）， 爬行动物（例如海龟）能够存活数天， 几个星期，甚至几个月埋在冻结底部的泥浆中， 池塘，即使可能根本没有氧气。而 有些物种仍然处于冬眠状态，在此期间， 身体的新陈代谢几乎停止，许多其他动物 在体温下保持完全活跃， 对人类是致命的。这些动物的耐受机制 人们对这种极端条件知之甚少。 因此，本项目的目标是开始了解 动物在许多方面 与人类相似的生物能够在 与我们的存在无关理解这一点的关键可能是 钠和钙等物质 在细胞壁中移动， 器官，如大脑和心脏。如果是这样的话， 有可能找到可以扩大耐药性的药物 人类在极端的环境条件下。

The capacity of many vertebrate animals to withstand environmental conditions that are completely incompatible with human life has intrigued scientists and laymen for centuries. We now know that some fish, amphibians (i.e. frog larvae), and reptiles (turtles, for example) are capable of surviving days, weeks, or even months buried in the mud at the bottom of frozen ponds, even though there may be no oxygen present at all. While some species remain in a state of hibernation, during which their body metabolism virtually comes to a halt, many other animals remain fully active at body temperatures that would be quickly fatal to humans. The mechanisms by which these animals tolerate such extreme conditions are very poorly understood. The goal of this project, then, is to begin to understand the fundamental mechanisms by which animals that are in many ways similar to humans are able to function under conditions so foreign to our existence. The key to this understanding may be differences in the way that substances such as sodium and calcium are permitted to move through the walls of cells in crucial organs, such as the brain and heart. If so, it may ultimately be possible to identify drugs that would expand the resistance of humans to extreme environmental conditions.