Further varieties of ancient endogenous retrovirus in human DNA.

ABSTRACT: A retrovirus inserts its genome into the DNA of a cell, occasionally a germ-line cell that gives rise to descendants of the host organism: it is then called an endogenous retrovirus (ERV). The human genome contains relics from many kinds of ancient ERV. Some relics contributed new genes and regulatory elements. This study finds further kinds of ancient ERV, in the thoroughly-studied human genome version hg38: ERV-Hako, ERV-Saru, ERV-Hou, ERV-Han, and ERV-Goku. It also finds many relics of ERV-V, previously known from just two copies on chromosome 19 with placental genes. It finds a type of ERV flanked by MER41E long terminal repeats (LTRs), with surprisingly little similarity to the known MER41 ERV. ERV-Hako has subtypes that contain sequence from host genes SUSD6 and SPHKAP: the SUSD6 var

SUBMITTER: Frith MC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11905727 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature