Wild Naked Mole Rats Don’t Get Cancer

Naked mole rats differ from other rodents in various ways, in addition to their lack of hair: They appear to be immune to cancer and have an uncommonly lengthy lifespan for a rodent. Researchers have now identified a natural substance that is present between the rodents' tissues and may be the cause of their resistance to cancer.

The peculiar nature of naked mole rats is obvious from their name alone. The fact that naked mole rats do not contract cancer in the wild is one of their most amazing characteristics, despite their very peculiar look. In fact, a naked mole rat bred in an unusual environment with higher than usual oxygen levels was the only one ever to be found to have cancer. It has been hypothesized that this caused the cancer.

The scientists discovered after studying tissue cultures from naked mole rats that these tiny, underground rodents create a distinct, high-molecular-mass type of hyaluronan they dubbed HMW-HA. The removal of this molecule caused naked mole rat cells to be more prone to tumor formation, which suggests that HMW-HA plays a significant part in the rodents' resistance to cancer.