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Naked Mole Rat
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Naked mole rats feed primarily on very large tubers (weighing as much as 1000 times the body weight of a typical mole rat) that they find deep underground through their mining operations, but also eat their own feces (coprophagia). A single tuber can provide a colony with a long-term source of food—lasting for months, or even years, as they eat the inside but leave the outside, allowing the tuber to regenerate. Symbiotic bacteria in their intestines ferment the fibres, allowing previously indigestible cellulose to be turned into volatile fatty acids.
Longevity
The naked mole rat is also of interest because it is extraordinarily long-lived for a rodent of its size (up to 28 years) and holds the record for the longest living rodent. The reason for their longevity is debated, but is thought to be related to the fact that they can substantially reduce their metabolism during hard times, and so prevent oxidative damage. This has been summed up as "They're living their life in pulses." Because of their extraordinary longevity, an international effort was put into place to sequence the genome of the naked mole rat. A draft genome was made available in 2011.
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