{"doi":"10.64898/2026.02.17.706346","title":"The effect of age and sex on the rate of de novo mutations in barn owls","abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>\n                <jats:p>\n                  The rate of new mutations is the ultimate source of genetic variation, and thus, a fundamental quantity in evolution. Mutation rates vary across the tree of life, influenced by selection pressures and life-history traits. Within species, mutation rates and types show subtle differences between sexes as well as a positive association with parental age. Most of the direct estimates come from a few mammal species, often primates, and their generality has not been fully realised. Using 33 parent-offspring trios, we investigate the mutation rate in the barn owl (\n                  <jats:italic>Tyto alba</jats:italic>\n                  ) and show that this species has a mutation rate of 5.6 × 10\n                  <jats:sup>−9</jats:sup>\n                  , matching rates of passerine species with a similar generation time of 2-3 years. Using different phasing methods we show that fathers pass on twice as many mutations as mothers and identify subtle differences in the sex-specific spectra of mutations. We also find that the number of mutations increases with paternal age, bringing direct evidence for germline senescence in birds. While across-species mutation rates and types appear conserved, the potential for within species variation due to age is substantial.\n                </jats:p>","journal":null,"year":null,"id":650340,"datarank":0.0,"base_score":0.0,"endowment":0.0,"self_citation_contribution":0.0,"citation_network_contribution":0.0,"self_endowment_contribution":0.0,"citer_contribution":0.0,"corpus_percentile":null,"corpus_rank":null,"citation_count":0,"citer_count":0,"citers_with_citation_signal":0,"citers_with_endowment":0,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":false,"is_dataset_confidence":null,"is_data_producer":false,"deposit_databanks":null,"is_oa":false,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":null,"fair_score":null,"fair_percentile":null,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":1695687,"name":"Anne-Lyse Ducrest","orcid":"0000-0001-6412-2769","position":1,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1695688,"name":"Ana Drago-Rosa","orcid":"0000-0002-4413-9579","position":2,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1695689,"name":"Céline Simon","orcid":null,"position":3,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":183679,"name":"Bettina Almasi","orcid":"0000-0003-4962-8117","position":4,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1695690,"name":"Alexandre Roulin","orcid":"0000-0003-1940-6927","position":5,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":22113,"name":"Jérôme Goudet","orcid":"0000-0002-5318-7601","position":6,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1695686,"name":"Alexandros Topaloudis","orcid":"0000-0002-0909-8695","position":0,"is_corresponding":false}],"reference_count":0,"raw_metadata":{"has_enrichment":true,"resolved":true,"title":"The effect of age and sex on the rate of de novo mutations in barn owls","abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>\n                <jats:p>\n                  The rate of new mutations is the ultimate source of genetic variation, and thus, a fundamental quantity in evolution. Mutation rates vary across the tree of life, influenced by selection pressures and life-history traits. Within species, mutation rates and types show subtle differences between sexes as well as a positive association with parental age. Most of the direct estimates come from a few mammal species, often primates, and their generality has not been fully realised. Using 33 parent-offspring trios, we investigate the mutation rate in the barn owl (\n                  <jats:italic>Tyto alba</jats:italic>\n                  ) and show that this species has a mutation rate of 5.6 × 10\n                  <jats:sup>−9</jats:sup>\n                  , matching rates of passerine species with a similar generation time of 2-3 years. Using different phasing methods we show that fathers pass on twice as many mutations as mothers and identify subtle differences in the sex-specific spectra of mutations. We also find that the number of mutations increases with paternal age, bringing direct evidence for germline senescence in birds. While across-species mutation rates and types appear conserved, the potential for within species variation due to age is substantial.\n                </jats:p>","is_dataset_classified":null,"base_score":0.0,"endowment":0.0,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"views":0,"has_version_chain":false,"is_dataset":false,"is_oa":false,"pmid":"19162232","pmcid":null,"openalex_id":"https://openalex.org/W7130503481","authors":[],"funders":[{"funder_name":"","grant_id":"310030_215709","title":null}],"total_grants":1,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"citation_trend":[],"oa_status":"green","license":"cc-by","oa_locations":[{"url":"https://www.biorxiv.org/content/biorxiv/early/2026/02/18/2026.02.17.706346.full.pdf","host_type":"repository"},{"url":"https://www.biorxiv.org/content/biorxiv/early/2026/02/18/2026.02.17.706346.full.pdf","host_type":"repository"},{"url":"https://syndication.highwire.org/content/doi/10.64898/2026.02.17.706346","host_type":"publisher"},{"url":"https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.02.17.706346","host_type":"repository"}],"fields_of_study":["Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics","Evolution and Genetic Dynamics","Genetic diversity and population structure"],"mesh_terms":[],"keywords":["Mutation rate","Mutation","Germline mutation","Passerine","Germline","Mutation Accumulation"],"sdg_mappings":[],"linked_datasets":[],"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"database_accessions":[],"source":"live","citation_network_status":"fetched"},"created_at":"2026-08-10T05:17:53.489312Z","pmid":null,"pmcid":null,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":null,"fair_a":null,"fair_i":null,"fair_r":null,"fair_zscore":null,"fair_rationale":null,"fair_model":null,"fair_agent_version":null,"fair_fulltext_source":null,"fair_has_llm":null,"fair_computed_at":null,"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}