Exploring the Role of Transposable Elements to Sex Gap in Longevity in Three Drosophila Species
5 affiliations
- 1Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, CNRS, UMR5558 Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 Villeurbanne Rhône‐Alpes France
- 2InBIO Laboratório Associado, CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos Universidade do Porto Vairão Portugal
- 3Departamento de Biologia Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto Porto Portugal
- 4BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO Vairão Portugal
- 5Institut Universitaire de France (IUF) Paris France
Abstract
In Drosophila, like other animal species, females tend to live longer than males, a phenomenon known as sex gap in longevity (SGL). One possible explanation could involve the activity of transposable elements (TE). TEs are normally repressed by epigenetic mechanisms, but this regulation weakens with age. Y chromosomes are enriched in TEs, and age‐related TE activity may therefore be more pronounced in older males, likely affecting longevity (toxic Y hypothesis). Using three Drosophila species with different TE content, we showed that SGL varies among wild‐type populations, reflecting both intra‐ and interspecies differences. Transcriptomic data revealed an age‐related increase in TE‐derived reads in D. melanogaster and D. suzukii, but not in D. simulans , with no differences between sexes. However, we observed a higher number of upregulated TE copies in older males compared to older females across the three species tested, which does not necessarily reflect increased transposition activity. Moreover, longevity assays did not reveal an association between increased TE expression and reduced lifespan. Finally, replacing the Y chromosome between strains with different SGL resulted in a progressive and strain‐specific reduction of male lifespan in D. melanogaster , despite similar Y chromosome size. This was accompanied by gene expression changes and increased TE expression. In summary, our work calls for a reconsideration of the toxic Y hypothesis, suggesting it may be less relevant in species with low genomic TE content. Notably, Y chromosome effects on lifespan seem to be driven more by Y‐linked heterochromatic polymorphisms and epistatic interactions than by overall TE abundance.
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BibTeX
@article{merenciano2026exploring,
title = {{Exploring the Role of Transposable Elements to Sex Gap in Longevity in Three Drosophila Species}},
author = {Miriam Merenciano and Sonia Janillon and Camille Mermet‐Bouvier and Nelly Burlet and Valentina Rodriguez‐Rada and Victor Ronget and Patricia Gibert and Jean‐Michel Gaillard and Jean‐François Lemaitre and Gabriel A. B. Marais and Matthieu Boulesteix and Marie Fablet and Cristina Vieira},
journal = {Aging Cell},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1111/acel.70788},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/acel.70788},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Exploring the Role of Transposable Elements to Sex Gap in Longevity in Three Drosophila Species
AU - Miriam Merenciano
AU - Sonia Janillon
AU - Camille Mermet‐Bouvier
AU - Nelly Burlet
AU - Valentina Rodriguez‐Rada
AU - Victor Ronget
AU - Patricia Gibert
AU - Jean‐Michel Gaillard
AU - Jean‐François Lemaitre
AU - Gabriel A. B. Marais
AU - Matthieu Boulesteix
AU - Marie Fablet
AU - Cristina Vieira
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/03
JO - Aging Cell
DO - 10.1111/acel.70788
UR - https://doi.org/10.1111/acel.70788
AB - In Drosophila, like other animal species, females tend to live longer than males, a phenomenon known as sex gap in longevity (SGL). One possible explanation could involve the activity of transposable elements (TE). TEs are normally repressed by epigenetic mechanisms, but this regulation weakens with age. Y chromosomes are enriched in TEs, and age‐related TE activity may therefore be more pronounced in older males, likely affecting longevity (toxic Y hypothesis). Using three Drosophila species with different TE content, we showed that SGL varies among wild‐type populations, reflecting both intra‐ and interspecies differences. Transcriptomic data revealed an age‐related increase in TE‐derived reads in D. melanogaster and D. suzukii, but not in D. simulans , with no differences between sexes. However, we observed a higher number of upregulated TE copies in older males compared to older females across the three species tested, which does not necessarily reflect increased transposition activity. Moreover, longevity assays did not reveal an association between increased TE expression and reduced lifespan. Finally, replacing the Y chromosome between strains with different SGL resulted in a progressive and strain‐specific reduction of male lifespan in D. melanogaster , despite similar Y chromosome size. This was accompanied by gene expression changes and increased TE expression. In summary, our work calls for a reconsideration of the toxic Y hypothesis, suggesting it may be less relevant in species with low genomic TE content. Notably, Y chromosome effects on lifespan seem to be driven more by Y‐linked heterochromatic polymorphisms and epistatic interactions than by overall TE abundance.
SN - 1474-9718
SN - 1474-9726
ER -