The Oldest Co-opted gag Gene of a Human Endogenous Retrovirus Shows Placenta-Specific Expression and Is Upregulated in Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphomas.

ABSTRACT: Vertebrate genomes contain endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) that represent remnants of past germline infections by ancient retroviruses. Despite comprising 8% of the human genome, the human ERVs (HERVs) do not encode a replication competent retrovirus. However, some HERV genes have been co-opted to serve host functions, most notably the viral envelope-derived syncytins involved in placentation. Here, we identify the oldest HERV intact gag gene with an open reading frame, gagV1. Its provirus contains an intact env, envV1, and the first open reading frame found in an HERV gag leader, pre-gagV1, which encodes a novel protein. This HERV is linked to a related gag gene, gagV3, and these three genes all show patterns of evolutionary conservation in primates. gagV1 and pre-gagV1 orthologs are prese

SUBMITTER: Boso G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8662612 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature