African Naked mole rat

• The naked mole rat also known as the sand puppy or desert mole rat, is a burrowing rodent native to parts of East Africa and the only species currently classified in the genus Heterocephalus.
• It has a highly unusual set of physical traits that enables it to thrive in an otherwise harsh, underground environment, including a lack of pain sensation in its skin and a very low metabolism.
• Typical individuals are 8 to 10 cm (3 to 4 in) long and weigh 30 to 35 grams (1.1 to 1.2 oz). Queens are larger and may weigh well over 50 grams (1.8 oz), the largest reaching 80 grams (2.8 oz).
• Their eyes are quite small, and their visual acuity is poor. 
• Their legs are thin and short; however, they are highly adept at moving underground and can move backward as fast as they can move forward.
•  Their large, protruding teeth are used to dig, and their lips are sealed just behind the teeth to prevent soil from filling their mouths while digging. 
• They have little hair (hence the common name) and wrinkled pink or yellowish skin.
• The skin of naked mole rats lacks a key neurotransmitter called substance P that is responsible in mammals for sending pain signals to the central nervous system. 
• When naked mole rats are exposed to acid or capsaicin, they feel no pain.
• Because of their extraordinary longevity, an international effort was put into place to sequence the genome of the naked mole rat. 
• A draft genome was made available in 2011.

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