Bat genomes illuminate adaptations to viral tolerance and disease resistance.

ABSTRACT: Zoonoses are infectious diseases transmitted from animals to humans. Bats have been suggested to harbour more zoonotic viruses than any other mammalian order¹. Infections in bats are largely asymptomatic^2,3, indicating limited tissue-damaging inflammation and immunopathology. To investigate the genomic basis of disease resistance, the Bat1K project generated reference-quality genomes of ten bat species, including potential viral reservoirs. Here we describe a systematic analysis covering 115 mammalian genomes that revealed that signatures of selection in immune genes are more prevalent in bats than in other mammalian orders. We found an excess of immune gene adaptations in the ancestral chiropteran branch and in many descending bat lineages, highlighting viral entry a

SUBMITTER: Morales AE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11821529 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature