Drosophila P elements preferentially transpose to replication origins.

ABSTRACT: The P transposable element recently invaded wild Drosophila melanogaster strains worldwide. A single introduced copy can multiply and spread throughout the fly genome in just a few generations, even though its cut-and-paste transposition mechanism does not inherently increase copy number. P element insertions preferentially target the promoters of a subset of genes, but why these sites are hotspots remains unknown. We show that P elements selectively target sites that in tissue-culture cells bind origin recognition complex proteins and function as replication origins. The association of origin recognition complex-binding sites with selected promoters and their absence near clustered differentiation genes may dictate P element site specificity. Inserting at unfired replication origins durin

SUBMITTER: Spradling AC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3179094 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature