Division of Cellular and Developmental Biology, MCB Department, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Nat Cell Biol. 2022 Sep;24(9):1332-1340. doi: 10.1038/s41556-022-00970-4. Epub 2022 Aug 25.
Since the discovery of transposons, their sheer abundance in host genomes has puzzled many. While historically viewed as largely harmless 'parasitic' DNAs during evolution, transposons are not a mere record of ancient genome invasion. Instead, nearly every element of transposon biology has been integrated into host biology. Here we review how host genome sequences introduced by transposon activities provide raw material for genome innovation and document the distinct evolutionary path of each species.
自从转座子被发现以来，它们在宿主基因组中的丰富程度一直令许多人感到困惑。虽然在历史上，转座子被视为在进化过程中基本无害的“寄生”DNA，但它们不仅仅是古老基因组入侵的记录。相反，转座子生物学的几乎每一个要素都已经融入了宿主生物学。在这里，我们回顾了转座子活动引入的宿主基因组序列如何为基因组创新提供原材料，并记录了每个物种的独特进化途径。
