Comparison of degu (Octodon degus), Naked Mole Rat, Mouse and Human genomes identified common hallmarks of aging and Alzheimer's Disease

To provide new insight into the mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathogenesis and aid the discovery of new therapies in humans it is important to expand and complement research using mouse models by developing, characterizing, and validating suitable new or unconventional mammalian, non‐murine models of AD. Our goal was to create genome assemblies at the chromosome level associated with AD‐like pathogenesis using two long‐lived animal models. The degu (Octodon degus) which naturally exhibits AD neuropathology and the naked mole rat (H. glaber) best known for its resistance to cancer and aging. To understand evolutionary paths to longevity and associated diseases like AD we characterized their genome features and identified common substitutions in long‐lived rodents that support enhanced tolerance to DNA damage.