Overview
- Researchers from Tulane and collaborators reported the finding in a Science Advances paper published July 29–30, 2026, and released related university briefings.
- The team discovered that vesper bats carry two distinct immunoglobulin heavy‑chain loci, meaning they have two separate sets of genes that build the heavy part of antibodies.
- This duplicated heavy‑chain arrangement has not been seen in other mammals and appears on different chromosomes in the bat genomes the authors examined.
- Genetic evidence in the study shows both loci are functional and used by immune cells, with one locus offering a broad built‑in repertoire and the other relying more on mutation to refine antibodies.
- Authors say the result opens new avenues for studying adaptive immunity, evolutionary biology, and spillover risk but it does not yet prove the duplication is the reason bats tolerate many viruses.