An Ancient Transkingdom Horizontal Transfer of Penelope-Like Retroelements from Arthropods to Conifers.

ABSTRACT: Comparative genomics analyses empowered by the wealth of sequenced genomes have revealed numerous instances of horizontal DNA transfers between distantly related species. In eukaryotes, repetitive DNA sequences known as transposable elements (TEs) are especially prone to move across species boundaries. Such horizontal transposon transfers, or HTTs, are relatively common within major eukaryotic kingdoms, including animals, plants, and fungi, while rarely occurring across these kingdoms. Here, we describe the first case of HTT from animals to plants, involving TEs known as Penelope-like elements, or PLEs, a group of retrotransposons closely related to eukaryotic telomerases. Using a combination of in situ hybridization on chromosomes, polymerase chain reaction experiments, and computational

SUBMITTER: Lin X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4860704 | biostudies-literature | 2016 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature