Chiang Vic Shao-Chih, DeRosa Holly, Park Jin Ho, Hunter Richard G
College of Liberal Arts, Department of Psychology, Developmental and Brain Sciences Program, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, United States.
Front Behav Neurosci. 2022 Jul 7;16:923732. doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.923732. eCollection 2022.
Up to 50% of most mammalian genomes are made up of transposable elements (TEs) that have the potential to mobilize around the genome. Despite this prevalence, research on TEs is only beginning to gain traction within the field of neuroscience. While TEs have long been regarded as "junk" or parasitic DNA, it has become evident that they are adaptive DNA and RNA regulatory elements. In addition to their vital role in normal development, TEs can also interact with steroid receptors, which are key elements to sexual development. In this review, we provide an overview of the involvement of TEs in processes related to sexual development- from TE activity in the germline to TE accumulation in sex chromosomes. Moreover, we highlight sex differences in TE activity and their regulation of genes related to sexual development. Finally, we speculate on the epigenetic mechanisms that may govern TEs' role in sexual development. In this context, we emphasize the need to further the understanding of sexual development through the lens of TEs including in a variety of organs at different developmental stages, their molecular networks, and evolution.
大多数哺乳动物基因组中高达50%由可移动元件（TEs）组成，这些元件有可能在基因组中移动。尽管其普遍存在，但对TEs的研究在神经科学领域才刚刚开始受到关注。虽然TEs长期以来一直被视为“垃圾”或寄生DNA，但现在已经很明显它们是适应性的DNA和RNA调节元件。除了在正常发育中的重要作用外，TEs还可以与类固醇受体相互作用，而类固醇受体是性发育的关键要素。在这篇综述中，我们概述了TEs在与性发育相关过程中的参与情况——从种系中的TE活性到性染色体上的TE积累。此外，我们强调了TE活性中的性别差异及其对与性发育相关基因的调控。最后，我们推测了可能控制TEs在性发育中作用的表观遗传机制。在此背景下，我们强调需要通过TEs这一视角进一步理解性发育，包括在不同发育阶段的各种器官中、它们的分子网络以及进化过程中的性发育。
