Mu killer-Mediated and Spontaneous Silencing of Zea mays Mutator Family Transposable Elements Define Distinctive Paths of Epigenetic Inactivation.

ABSTRACT: Mu killer contains a partial inverted duplication of the mudrA transposase gene and two copies of the terminal inverted repeat A (TIRA) region of the master MuDR element of maize. Mu killer can effectively silence single copy MuDR/Mu lines, and it is proposed that a ∼4 kb hairpin RNA is generated by read through transcription from a flanking gene and that this transcript serves as a substrate for siRNA production. Mu killer was sequenced, except for a recalcitrant portion in the center of the locus, and shown to be co-linear with mudrA as originally proposed. The ability of the dominant Mu killer locus to silence a standard high copy number MuDR/Mu transposon line was evaluated. After two generations of exposure, about three quarters of individuals were silenced indicating reasonable effec

SUBMITTER: Skibbe DS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3440606 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature