A Telomere-to-telomere genome of the hibernating fat-tailed dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus medius)

Breit, A. M.; Takeshita, R. S. C.; Ehmke, E.; Walls, C.; Billington, C.; Larsen, P.; McLain, A.; Faulk, C.

doi:10.64898/2026.07.30.741870

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bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.07.30.741870

A Telomere-to-telomere genome of the hibernating fat-tailed dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus medius)

Breit, A. M.·Takeshita, R. S. C.·Ehmke, E.·Walls, C.·Billington, C.·Larsen, P.·McLain, A.·Faulk, C.

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Abstract

Madagascars dwarf lemurs (genus Cheirogaleus) are the only obligate-hibernating primates and closest relative to humans capable of hibernation. Endemic to the increasingly fragmented dry forests of Madagascar, the fat tailed dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus medius) represents a unique model for understanding primate physiology and tropical hibernation. Here we present FatTail1, a highly contiguous diploid genome assembly generated from a male C. medius at the Duke Lemur Center using Oxford Nanopore Technologies PromethION sequencing. The assembly spans 2.3 Gb, with an N50 of 103Mb, L50 of 10, and a BUSCO completeness score of over 99%. In addition to a complete mitogenome, we generated allele-specific DNA methylation profiles and annotated 23,925 genes using NCBIs EGAPX. FatTail1 exceeds the gap-free contiguity of previously published strepsirrhine genomes, representing the first telomere-to-telomere genome of a Strepsirrhine primate, and providing a foundation for future studies of primate hibernation, epigenetic regulation, and conservation genomics. ARTICLE SUMMARYDwarf lemurs are the only primates and closest relative to humans capable of months-long hibernation, making them an important model for understanding metabolic adaptations with relevance to human physiology. Here we present FatTail1, the first telomere-to-telomere genome assembly of a strepsirrhine primate, generated from a fat-tailed dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus medius) using Oxford Nanopore Technologies PromethION sequencing. In addition to a highly complete nuclear genome, we assembled the mitogenome, identified allele-specific DNA methylation profiles and annotated 23,925 genes. FatTail1 exceeds the gap-free contiguity of previously published strepsirrhine genomes and provides an improved genomic resource for studies of hibernation, comparative genomics, epigenetic regulation, evolutionary biology, and conservation of this threatened primate.

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Breit, A. M., Takeshita, R. S. C., Ehmke, E., Walls, C., Billington, C., Larsen, P., McLain, A., Faulk, C.. 2026-08-05. A Telomere-to-telomere genome of the hibernating fat-tailed dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus medius). https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.07.30.741870

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