Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Nature
Insights into longevity and virus-driven adaptation from Myotis bat genomes
23 affiliations
- 1Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA
- 2Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- 3Department of Biology, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA
- 4Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- 5Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie (CIRI), Inserm U1111, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5308, Ecole Normale Supérieure ENS de Lyon, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
- 6Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
- 7Université de Strasbourg, Architecture et Réactivité de l'ARN, Institut de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire du CNRS, Strasbourg, France
- 8Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- 9Wildlife Diversity Program, Wildlife Division, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Burlington, CT, USA
- 10Wildlife Genetics Research Unit, Wildlife Health Laboratory, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Sacramento, CA, USA
- 11Department of Biology, California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, Arcata, CA, USA
- 12Department of Pathology and Clinical Laboratories, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- 13Department of Biological Sciences, Smith College, Northampton, MA, USA
- 14Department of Science and Biotechnology, Berkeley City College, Berkeley, CA, USA
- 15Center for Computational Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- 16Bat Conservation International, Austin, TX, USA
- 17Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- 18Colossal Biosciences, Dallas, TX, USA
- 19Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
- 20Bat Survey Solutions, Tucson, AZ, USA
- 21Centre International de Recherche en Infectiologie (CIRI), Inserm U1111, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS UMR5308, Ecole Normale Supérieure ENS de Lyon, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France. [email protected]
- 22Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA. [email protected]
- 23Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA. [email protected]
Abstract
The genus Myotis is one of the largest clades of bats, and it exhibits some of the most extreme variation in lifespans among mammals, alongside unique adaptations to viral tolerance and immune defence1,2,3. Here, to study the evolution of these phenotypes, we generated cell lines and near-complete genome assemblies for eight closely related Myotis species. Using genome-wide screens of positive selection, analyses of structural variation and functional experiments in primary cells, we identify patterns of adaptation contributing to longevity, cancer resistance and viral interactions. We demonstrate distinct modes of adaptation to DNA and RNA viruses compared with all other mammals, with bats exhibiting genome-wide over-representation of positive selection for DNA-virus-interacting proteins and elevated rates of copy-number variation for RNA-virus-interacting proteins. Characterization of Myotis-specific duplications of the key immune factor EIF2AK2 (also known as PKR) reveals multiple ancient segregating trans-species copy-number polymorphisms. We show that the recurrent evolution of longevity seen in Myotis is associated with positive selection in cancer pathways, and demonstrate a unique response to DNA damage in primary cells of the long-lived Myotis lucifugus. Together, our results suggest that bats’ remarkable longevity and immunity are linked through pleiotropic adaptations to viruses and ageing-related disease.
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BibTeX
@article{vazquez2026insights,
title = {{Insights into longevity and virus-driven adaptation from Myotis bat genomes}},
author = {Juan Manuel Vázquez and M. Elise Lauterbur and Saba Mottaghinia and Léa Gaucherand and Sarah Maesen and Michael Singer and Sarah Villa and Melanie E. Bucci and Devaughn L. Fraser and Genavieve Gray-Sandoval and Zeinab R Haidar and Melissa Han and William Kohler and Tanya M. Lama and Amandine Le Corf and Clara Loyer and Dakota McMillan and Stacy Li and Johnathan Lo and Carine Rey and Samantha L. R. Capel and Kathleen Slocum and Melissa Sui and William Thomas and Janet Debelak Tyburec and Rachel B. Brem and Richard A. Miller and Michael R. Buchalski and José Pablo Vázquez‐Medina and Sébastien Pfeffer and Lucie Etienne and David Enard and Peter H. Sudmant},
journal = {Nature},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1038/s41586-026-10932-7},
url = {https://univoak.hal.science/hal-05758640v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Insights into longevity and virus-driven adaptation from Myotis bat genomes
AU - Juan Manuel Vázquez
AU - M. Elise Lauterbur
AU - Saba Mottaghinia
AU - Léa Gaucherand
AU - Sarah Maesen
AU - Michael Singer
AU - Sarah Villa
AU - Melanie E. Bucci
AU - Devaughn L. Fraser
AU - Genavieve Gray-Sandoval
AU - Zeinab R Haidar
AU - Melissa Han
AU - William Kohler
AU - Tanya M. Lama
AU - Amandine Le Corf
AU - Clara Loyer
AU - Dakota McMillan
AU - Stacy Li
AU - Johnathan Lo
AU - Carine Rey
AU - Samantha L. R. Capel
AU - Kathleen Slocum
AU - Melissa Sui
AU - William Thomas
AU - Janet Debelak Tyburec
AU - Rachel B. Brem
AU - Richard A. Miller
AU - Michael R. Buchalski
AU - José Pablo Vázquez‐Medina
AU - Sébastien Pfeffer
AU - Lucie Etienne
AU - David Enard
AU - Peter H. Sudmant
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/26
JO - Nature
DO - 10.1038/s41586-026-10932-7
UR - https://univoak.hal.science/hal-05758640v1
AB - The genus Myotis is one of the largest clades of bats, and it exhibits some of the most extreme variation in lifespans among mammals, alongside unique adaptations to viral tolerance and immune defence1,2,3. Here, to study the evolution of these phenotypes, we generated cell lines and near-complete genome assemblies for eight closely related Myotis species. Using genome-wide screens of positive selection, analyses of structural variation and functional experiments in primary cells, we identify patterns of adaptation contributing to longevity, cancer resistance and viral interactions. We demonstrate distinct modes of adaptation to DNA and RNA viruses compared with all other mammals, with bats exhibiting genome-wide over-representation of positive selection for DNA-virus-interacting proteins and elevated rates of copy-number variation for RNA-virus-interacting proteins. Characterization of Myotis-specific duplications of the key immune factor EIF2AK2 (also known as PKR) reveals multiple ancient segregating trans-species copy-number polymorphisms. We show that the recurrent evolution of longevity seen in Myotis is associated with positive selection in cancer pathways, and demonstrate a unique response to DNA damage in primary cells of the long-lived Myotis lucifugus. Together, our results suggest that bats’ remarkable longevity and immunity are linked through pleiotropic adaptations to viruses and ageing-related disease.
SN - 0028-0836
SN - 1476-4687
ER -