DeRosa Holly, Richter Troy, Wilkinson Cooper, Hunter Richard G
Psychology Department, Developmental Brain Sciences Program, College of Liberal Arts, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, United States.
Front Genet. 2022 May 25;13:813510. doi: 10.3389/fgene.2022.813510. eCollection 2022.
Long regarded as "junk DNA," transposable elements (TEs) have recently garnered much attention for their role in promoting genetic diversity and plasticity. While many processes involved in mammalian development require TE activity, deleterious TE insertions are a hallmark of several psychiatric disorders. Moreover, stressful events including exposure to gestational infection and trauma, are major risk factors for developing psychiatric illnesses. Here, we will provide evidence demonstrating the intersection of stressful events, atypical TE expression, and their epigenetic regulation, which may explain how neuropsychiatric phenotypes manifest. In this way, TEs may be the "bridge" between environmental perturbations and psychopathology.
长期以来被视为“垃圾DNA”的转座元件（TEs），最近因其在促进遗传多样性和可塑性方面的作用而备受关注。虽然哺乳动物发育过程中的许多过程都需要TE活性，但有害的TE插入是几种精神疾病的一个标志。此外，包括孕期感染和创伤暴露在内的应激事件，是患精神疾病的主要风险因素。在这里，我们将提供证据，证明应激事件、非典型TE表达及其表观遗传调控之间的交集，这可能解释神经精神表型是如何显现的。通过这种方式，TEs可能是环境扰动与精神病理学之间的“桥梁”。
