Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA.
Genes (Basel). 2021 Sep 16;12(9):1422. doi: 10.3390/genes12091422.
The genomes of higher eukaryotes are partitioned into topologically associated domains or TADs, and insulators (also known as boundary elements) are the key elements responsible for their formation and maintenance. Insulators were first identified and extensively studied in Drosophila as well as mammalian genomes, and have also been described in yeast and plants. In addition, many insulator proteins are known in Drosophila, and some have been investigated in mammals. However, much less is known about this important class of non-coding DNA elements in plant genomes. In this review, we take a detailed look at known plant insulators across different species and provide an overview of potential determinants of plant insulator functions, including cis-elements and boundary proteins. We also discuss methods previously used in attempts to identify plant insulators, provide a perspective on their importance for research and biotechnology, and discuss areas of potential future research.
高等真核生物的基因组被分割成拓扑相关结构域或 TADs，而绝缘子（也称为边界元件）是负责其形成和维持的关键元件。绝缘子最初在果蝇以及哺乳动物基因组中被发现并进行了广泛研究，在酵母和植物中也有描述。此外，在果蝇中已知有许多绝缘子蛋白，其中一些在哺乳动物中也进行了研究。然而，在植物基因组中，人们对这一重要的非编码 DNA 元件类知之甚少。在这篇综述中，我们详细研究了不同物种中的已知植物绝缘子，并概述了植物绝缘子功能的潜在决定因素，包括顺式元件和边界蛋白。我们还讨论了之前用于鉴定植物绝缘子的方法，探讨了它们对研究和生物技术的重要性，并讨论了未来可能的研究领域。
