Pervasive <i>cis</i>-regulatory co-option of a transposable element family reinforces cell identity across the mouse immune system.

ABSTRACT: Transposable elements (TEs) make up about half of the human and mouse genomes and play important regulatory roles in immune responses. However, the cis-regulatory contribution of TEs to immune cell development is less characterized. Here, we analyzed hundreds of chromatin accessibility, gene expression, transcription factor occupancy and DNA-DNA contact datasets in diverse mouse and human immune cells. We identified two rodent-specific TE subfamilies, ORR1E and ORR1D2 (collectively, ODE) that have transformed into cell type-specific enhancers across the mouse immune system. ODE loci acquired mutations post-insertion that enable differential binding of lineage-specifying transcription factors. ODEs show evidence of evolutionary sequence constraint and contact promoters of hundreds of

SUBMITTER: Chobirko JD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12776137 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature