Srikulnath Kornsorn, Ahmad Syed Farhan, Singchat Worapong, Panthum Thitipong
Animal Genomics and Bioresource Research Unit (AGB Research Unit), Faculty of Science, Kasetsart University, 50 Ngamwongwan, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900, Thailand.
Laboratory of Animal Cytogenetics and Comparative Genomics (ACCG), Department of Genetics, Faculty of Science, Kasetsart University, 50 Ngamwongwan, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900, Thailand.
Life (Basel). 2022 Apr 1;12(4):522. doi: 10.3390/life12040522.
Transposable elements (TEs) comprise a substantial portion of eukaryotic genomes. They have the unique ability to integrate into new locations and serve as the main source of genomic novelties by mediating chromosomal rearrangements and regulating portions of functional genes. Recent studies have revealed that TEs are abundant in sex chromosomes. In this review, we propose evolutionary relationships between specific TEs, such as Ty3/Gypsy, and sex chromosomes in different lineages based on the hypothesis that these elements contributed to sex chromosome differentiation processes. We highlight how TEs can drive the dynamics of sex-determining regions via suppression recombination under a selective force to affect the organization and structural evolution of sex chromosomes. The abundance of TEs in the sex-determining regions originates from TE-poor genomic regions, suggesting a link between TE accumulation and the emergence of the sex-determining regions. TEs are generally considered to be a hallmark of chromosome degeneration. Finally, we outline recent approaches to identify TEs and study their sex-related roles and effects in the differentiation and evolution of sex chromosomes.
转座元件（TEs）构成了真核生物基因组的很大一部分。它们具有独特的能力，能够整合到新的位置，并通过介导染色体重排和调控部分功能基因，成为基因组新特性的主要来源。最近的研究表明，TEs在性染色体中大量存在。在本综述中，基于这些元件促成了性染色体分化过程这一假设，我们提出了特定TEs（如Ty3/Gypsy）与不同谱系中性染色体之间的进化关系。我们强调了TEs如何在选择力的作用下，通过抑制重组来驱动性别决定区域的动态变化，从而影响性染色体的组织和结构进化。性别决定区域中TEs的丰富性源于基因组中TEs含量较低的区域，这表明TEs积累与性别决定区域的出现之间存在联系。TEs通常被认为是染色体退化的一个标志。最后，我们概述了最近用于识别TEs并研究它们在性染色体分化和进化中与性别相关的作用及影响的方法。
