Uncovering selection pressures on the IRF gene family in bats' immune system.

Unlike other mammals, bats serve as natural reservoirs for several highly pathogenic viruses without exhibiting symptoms of infection. Recent research has explored the complex mechanisms underlying the balance between bats' antiviral defenses and their pathological responses. However, the evolution of the molecular drivers behind bats' antiviral strategies remains largely unknown.

Unraveling genomic features and phylogenomics through the analysis of three Mexican endemic genomes.

Background: Genomic resource development for non-model organisms is rapidly progressing, seeking to uncover molecular mechanisms and evolutionary adaptations enabling thriving in diverse environments. Limited genomic data for bat species hinder insights into their evolutionary processes, particularly within the diverse genus of the Vespertilionidae family. In Mexico, 15 species exist, with three-, , and -being endemic and of conservation concern.

The mitochondrial genome of the mountain wooly tapir, Tapirus pinchaque and a formal test of the effect of altitude on the adaptive evolution of mitochondrial protein coding genes in odd-toed ungulates.

Background: The harsh conditions of high-altitude environments are known to drive the evolution of physiological and morphological traits in endothermic animals. These conditions are expected to result in the adaptive evolution of protein coding genes encoded in mitochondrial genomes that are vital for the oxidative phosphorylation pathway. In this study, we formally tested for signatures of adaptive evolution on mitochondrial protein coding genes in Tapirus pinchaque and other odd-toed ungulates inhabiting high-elevation environments.

The mitochondrial genomes of big-eared bats, Macrotus waterhousii and Macrotus californicus (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae: Macrotinae).

In the species-rich family Phyllostomidae, the genus Macrotus ('big eared' bats) contains only two species; Macrotus waterhousii, distributed in western, central, and southern Mexico, Guatemala and some Caribbean Islands, and Macrotus californicus, distributed in the southwestern USA, and in the Baja California peninsula and the state of Sonora in Mexico. In this study, we sequenced and assembled the mitochondrial genome of Macrotus waterhousii and characterized in detail this genome and that of the congeneric M. californicus.

Socio-spatial organization reveals paternity and low kinship in the Honduran white bat (Ectophylla alba) in Costa Rica.

Ectophylla alba is a tent-making bat that roosts in mixed-sex clusters comprising adults and offspring. Our goal was to determine the genetic identity of individuals belonging to different roosting groups. We tested the hypothesis of kin selection as a major force structuring group composition.

The Sonozotz project: Assembling an echolocation call library for bats in a megadiverse country.

Bat acoustic libraries are important tools that assemble echolocation calls to allow the comparison and discrimination to confirm species identifications. The Sonozotz project represents the first nation-wide library of bat echolocation calls for a megadiverse country. It was assembled following a standardized recording protocol that aimed to cover different recording habitats, recording techniques, and call variation inherent to individuals.

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite markers for and cross-species amplification in species.

Background: is one of the most species-rich genera in the Neotropics, and it is found from Mexico and the Lesser Antilles to Argentina. This genus forms a well-supported monophyletic clade with at least twenty-one recognized species, as well as several others under taxonomic review. is a widespread frugivorous bat of the deciduous forests of the Neotropics, is highly abundant, and is a major component in fruit dispersal to regenerate ecosystems.