More than one species of the naked mole-rat, a new biomedical model

The naked mole-rat Heterocephalus, a hairless, subterranean rodent from the Horn of Africa, has attracted scientific interest due to its cooperative breeding, poikilothermy, longevity, resistance to cancer, and tolerance to pain and hypoxia, among others. Genomic analyses of H. glaber, traditionally considered a single species, reveal three highly divergent lineages. One of these, identified as H. phillipsi Thomas 1885, shows deep genetic divergence (~4.1 Ma) and distinct morphology, notably reduced third molars, warranting recognition as a distinct species. The remaining two lineages, previously designated as the subspecies H. g. glaber Rüppell 1842 and H. g. ansorgei Thomas 1903, diverged around 2.3 Ma and their morphological differentiation is less pronounced. Each of the lineages occupies distinct environmental conditions, with H. phillipsi inhabiting extremely harsh habitats. The finding of an unexpected diversity within this key biomedical model opens new avenues across various fields of research.

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Publication Details

Journal
Communications Biology
Published
2025-12-09
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-025-09338-4
Citations
1
Primary Topic
Evolution and Paleontology Studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
4.33
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article

More than one species of the naked mole-rat, a new biomedical model

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1 citations
Communications Biology
Evolution and Paleontology Studies
4.33
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More than one species of the naked mole-rat, a new biomedical model

Radim Šumbera, Hassan Sh Abdirahman Elmi, Josef Bryja, Ondřej Mikula, Michaela Uhrová, Leonid A. Lavrenchenko, Veronika Tymlová, Petra Frýdlová, Daniel Frynta, Iveta Štolhoferová, Elena D. Zemlemerova, Václav Maštera
article en
1 citations

Abstract

The naked mole-rat Heterocephalus, a hairless, subterranean rodent from the Horn of Africa, has attracted scientific interest due to its cooperative breeding, poikilothermy, longevity, resistance to cancer, and tolerance to pain and hypoxia, among others. Genomic analyses of H. glaber, traditionally considered a single species, reveal three highly divergent lineages. One of these, identified as H. phillipsi Thomas 1885, shows deep genetic divergence (~4.1 Ma) and distinct morphology, notably reduced third molars, warranting recognition as a distinct species. The remaining two lineages, previously designated as the subspecies H. g. glaber Rüppell 1842 and H. g. ansorgei Thomas 1903, diverged around 2.3 Ma and their morphological differentiation is less pronounced. Each of the lineages occupies distinct environmental conditions, with H. phillipsi inhabiting extremely harsh habitats. The finding of an unexpected diversity within this key biomedical model opens new avenues across various fields of research.

Communications BiologyVol. 9(1)
Sewanee: The University of the South (US), Charles University (CZ), University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice (CZ), Amoud University (SO), Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Biology (CZ), Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution (RU), Czech Technical University in Prague (CZ)
Openalex Percentile: Top 5%
Evolution and Paleontology Studies
4.33
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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