Adaptation of the Spalax galili transcriptome to hypoxia may underlie the complex phenotype featuring longevity and cancer resistance.

In the subterranean rodent (Nanno)spalax galili, evolutionary adaptation to hypoxia is correlated with longevity and tumor resistance. Adapted gene-regulatory networks of Spalax might pinpoint strategies to maintain health in humans. Comparing liver, kidney and spleen transcriptome data from Spalax and rat at hypoxia and normoxia, we identified differentially expressed gene pathways common to multiple organs in both species.