A small RNA-guided PRC2 complex eliminates DNA as an extreme form of transposon silencing.

ABSTRACT: In animal germlines, transposons are silenced at the transcriptional or post-transcriptional level to prevent deleterious expression. Ciliates employ a more direct approach by physically eliminating transposons from their soma, utilizing piRNAs to recognize transposons and imprecisely excise them. Ancient, mutated transposons often do not require piRNAs and are precisely eliminated. Here, we characterize the Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) in Paramecium and demonstrate its involvement in the removal of transposons and transposon-derived DNA. Our results reveal a striking difference between the elimination of new and ancient transposons at the chromatin level and show that the complex may be guided by Piwi-bound small RNAs (sRNAs). We propose that imprecise elimination in ciliates orig

SUBMITTER: Wang C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10073204 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature