Alternative splicing and co-option of transposable elements: the case of TMPO/LAP2α and ZNF451 in mammals.

ABSTRACT: Transposable elements constitute a large fraction of vertebrate genomes and, during evolution, may be co-opted for new functions. Exonization of transposable elements inserted within or close to host genes is one possible way to generate new genes, and alternative splicing of the new exons may represent an intermediate step in this process. The genes TMPO and ZNF451 are present in all vertebrate lineages. Although they are not evolutionarily related, mammalian TMPO and ZNF451 do have something in common-they both code for splice isoforms that contain LAP2alpha domains. We found that these LAP2alpha domains have sequence similarity to repetitive sequences in non-mammalian genomes, which are in turn related to the first ORF from a DIRS1-like retrotransposon. This retrotransposon domesticatio

SUBMITTER: Abascal F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4495291 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature