Winnie the Pooh could hold the key to beating diabetes, according to new research. Every year, bears gain an enormous amount of weight, then barely move for months.
A sugar-rich diet is the main trigger for the metabolic disorder in humans. It’s caused by resistance to insulin, a hormone that controls glucose.
Bears can turn it on and off, almost like a switch, but scientists have found their secret: a particular set of hibernation proteins. Thousands of changes in gene expression were narrowed down to eight, specifically.
A Washington State University (WSU) team made the discovery by feeding honey, Pooh’s favorite food, to hibernating bears.
“There seem to be eight proteins that are working either independently or together to modulate the insulin sensitivity and resistance that is seen in hibernating bears,” said School of Biological Sciences Professor Joanna Kelley, lead author of the study. “All of these eight proteins have human homologs. They are not unique to bears. The same genes are in humans, so that means maybe there is a direct opportunity for translation.”