Ed Yong's piece on non-chewing rats would have been good fodder for our rodent-related Today in Mice: On the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, Jacob Esselstyn has discovered a new species of rodent that radically departs from this universal body plan: a “shrew-rat” that he calls Paucidentomys vermidax.Its name –a mash-up of Latin and Greek—gives a clue to its lifestyle. It means “worm-devouring, few-toothed mouse.” Would be nice if my former (and turns out, hoarding) neighbors had had "few-toothed" rats. ... Read More
A Long, Naked, Cancer-Free Life
November 3, 2009 • By • Leave a Comment
Although loyal readers of Today in Mice already knew about the naked mole rat's unique home life and abundance of the "love" hormone, scientists have discovered that the rodents possess another attribute worthy of bragging rights (besides their good looks, of course): They are the only known cancerless animals. The naked mole rat, which looks like a hairless mouse, has been known to live up to 30 years — more than enough time to develop cancer. But in spite of the study of large numbers of the strange-looking creatures, there has never been a documented case of cancer in a mole ... Read More
R.O.U.S. Found!
September 10, 2009 • By • 2 Comments
Big news on the rodent front out of Papua New Guinea — a giant wooly rat, both a brand-new species and likely the biggest rat in existence, has been identified by a team of scientists. Naturalist Steve Backshall said the most significant find among the (conservatively estimated) 40 new animal species found were 16 new frogs, including a fanged variety. Still, in a conversation with The Guardian's Mike Duran, he found time to enthuse about the rat, which he called "just insanely spectacular." That spectacle might help it in the cat-versus-rodent arms race: "It's about the size of a ... Read More
New Rat Species Nose Their Way Into Menageries
July 27, 2009 • By • Leave a Comment
Rodents — especially those found thriving amongst sewers and subway tracks — are regarded by many as the cockroaches of the mammal world. But here at Miller-McCune.com, we hold mice, rats and the rest of their furry relatives in high esteem for the insights they provide on issues ranging from disease identification and treatment to psychology and behavior. Which is why it is exciting to report that there are apparently more rodent species on the planet than we thought. Although nearly 1.8 million species of organisms have been identified on planet Earth, scientists believe there are ... Read More
Working Mice Spun From Skin Cells
July 25, 2009 • By • Leave a Comment
Embryonic cells are no longer the only cells that can produce live offspring. Two separate Chinese research teams reported this week that they have been able to reprogram skin tissue cells of mice into an embryonic-like state. The cells, called induced pluripotent stem cells, were first produced in 2006 by a Japanese research team from Kyoto University. They have long been theorized to have pluripotent abilities (the potential to differentiate into any cell type in the body except placenta) that could be used in future degenerative and genetic disease treatment. But until now scientists ... Read More
Leading Immunologist Argues Against Mice Models
December 22, 2008 • By • Leave a Comment
Stop the presses: What's this? A leading immunologist (at least, that's what they call him) at Stanford University (never heard of it) says the laboratory mouse can teach us only so much about why humans get sick. In the Dec. 19 edition of Immunity, Mark Davis writes, "We seem to be in a state of denial, where there is so much invested in the mouse model that it seems almost unthinkable to look elsewhere." To which we say, "Duh." This blog could have told him that. But it appears there's no dissuading Davis, the director of the Stanford Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and ... Read More
