Polar bear Knut died of brain illness

Postmortem on four-year-old polar bear who collapsed and died showed ‘significant changes to the brain’ Brain problems apparently caused the early death of Knut, Germany’s four-year-old celebrity polar bear, Berlin zoo has said. Initial findings from a postmortem performed by an institute in the German capital showed “significant changes to the brain, which can be viewed as a reason for the polar bear’s sudden death”, the zoo said in a statement. Pathologists found no changes to any other organs, the zoo said, adding that it would take several days to produce a final result. Further planned tests include bacteriological and histological, or tissue, examinations. Knut died on Saturday in front of visitors at the zoo, turning around several times and then falling into the water in his enclosure. Polar bears usually live 15 to 20 years in the wild and longer in captivity. Knut, who was born in December 2006 at the zoo, rose to celebrity status as a cub. He was rejected by his mother at birth, along with his twin brother, who only survived a couple of days. He attracted attention when his main keeper, Thomas Doerflein, camped out at the zoo to give Knut his bottle every two hours. Knut went on to appear on magazine covers, in a film and on mountains of merchandise. Doerflein died in 2008 of a heart attack. Knut Animals Germany guardian.co.uk

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