Morphological and genomic shifts in mole-rat queens increase fecundity but reduce skeletal integrity

Damaraland mole-rats are highly cooperative, subterranean mammals that live in colonies in which a single female dominates breeding, while all other adult females suppress their reproductive axis, remaining as subordinate, nonbreeding helpers. We explored the consequences of breeding on bone growth and gene regulation in Damaraland mole-rats by experimentally assigning breeder versus non-breeder status to females. Experimentally assigned breeding status was maintained for over one year prior to sample collection for molecular analyses (ATAC-Seq).