Accumulation of transposable elements in Hox gene clusters during adaptive radiation of Anolis lizards.

ABSTRACT: Transposable elements (TEs) are DNA sequences that can insert elsewhere in the genome and modify genome structure and gene regulation. The role of TEs in evolution is contentious. One hypothesis posits that TE activity generates genomic incompatibilities that can cause reproductive isolation between incipient species. This predicts that TEs will accumulate during speciation events. Here, I tested the prediction that extant lineages with a relatively high rate of speciation have a high number of TEs in their genomes. I sequenced and analysed the TE content of a marker genomic region (Hox clusters) in Anolis lizards, a classic case of an adaptive radiation. Unlike other vertebrates, including closely related lizards, Anolis lizards have high numbers of TEs in their Hox clusters, genomic regi

SUBMITTER: Feiner N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5069512 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature