Identification of a minimal Alu domain required for retrotransposition.

ABSTRACT: Alu elements are primate-specific retrotransposons that comprise ∼11% of human DNA. Alu sequences contain an internal RNA polymerase III promoter, and the resultant Alu RNA transcripts mobilize by a replicative process termed retrotransposition, which requires the long interspersed element-1 open reading frame 2-encoded protein (ORF2p). Here, we used HeLa cell-based retrotransposition assays to define a minimal Alu domain necessary for retrotransposition. We demonstrate that Alu transcripts expressed from a cytomegalovirus (CMV) RNA polymerase II promoter can efficiently undergo retrotransposition. The use of an external CMV promoter to express Alu RNA allowed us to construct separation-of-function mutations to examine the effects of large deletions within the Alu sequence on retrotranspos

SUBMITTER: Moldovan JB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12199147 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature