Data and analysis pipeline for: Ferritin copy number tracks phylogeny, not longevity, across tetrapod vertebrates

Data and analysis pipeline supporting: McColl G. "Ferritin copy number tracks phylogeny, not longevity, across tetrapod vertebrates." PNAS Letter to the Editor (2026). This archive contains all data, pipeline scripts, and statistical results for a systematic survey of functional FTH1 (ferritin heavy chain) gene copy number across 112 tetrapod vertebrates with well-characterised maximum lifespans. Species were selected from the AnAge longevity database on three criteria: AnAge quality-rated lifespan, availability of an annotated NCBI RefSeq proteome, and representation in the TimeTree species tree. Candidate loci were identified by profile-HMM search and filtered by conservation of ≥6/7 canonical ferroxidase-centre residues. Phylogenetic generalised least squares (PGLS) with Pagel's λ estimated by maximum likelihood showed that FTH1 copy number is almost entirely determined by phylogenetic position (λ = 1.0, LRT = 150.6, p < 0.0001) and does not predict longevity quotient (β = −0.023, p = 0.616, n = 112) or maximum lifespan (β = −0.042, p = 0.476) after phylogenetic correction. Chelonians show a clade-level elevation in copy number (median 8, range 3–13, n = 9) that does not reach significance within-clade (p = 0.630). The archive includes all pipeline scripts (steps 01–05 plus PGLS and sensitivity analyses), processed data files, and results tables.