Kai Otsuka, Akihiko Sakashita, So Maezawa, Richard M. Schultz, Satoshi H. Namekawa
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
As transposable elements (TEs) coevolved with the host genome, the host genome exploited TEs as functional regulatory elements of gene expression. Here we show that a subset of KRAB domain–containing zinc-finger proteins (KZFPs), which are highly expressed in mitotically dividing spermatogonia, repress the enhancer function of endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) and that the release from KZFP-mediated repression allows activation of ERV enhancers upon entry into meiosis. This regulatory feature is observed for independently evolved KZFPs and ERVs in mice and humans, suggesting evolutionary conservation in mammals. Further, we show that KZFP-targeted ERVs are underrepresented on the sex chromosomes in meiosis, suggesting that meiotic sex chromosome inactivation (MSCI) may antagonize the coevolution of KZFPs and ERVs in mammals. Our study uncovers a mechanism by which a subset of KZFPs regulate ERVs to sculpt germline transcriptomes. We propose that epigenetic programming during the transition from mitotic spermatogonia to meiotic spermatocytes facilitates the coevolution of KZFPs and TEs on autosomes and is antagonized by MSCI.
期刊介绍:
Launched in 1995, Genome Research is an international, continuously published, peer-reviewed journal that focuses on research that provides novel insights into the genome biology of all organisms, including advances in genomic medicine.
Among the topics considered by the journal are genome structure and function, comparative genomics, molecular evolution, genome-scale quantitative and population genetics, proteomics, epigenomics, and systems biology. The journal also features exciting gene discoveries and reports of cutting-edge computational biology and high-throughput methodologies.
New data in these areas are published as research papers, or methods and resource reports that provide novel information on technologies or tools that will be of interest to a broad readership. Complete data sets are presented electronically on the journal''s web site where appropriate. The journal also provides Reviews, Perspectives, and Insight/Outlook articles, which present commentary on the latest advances published both here and elsewhere, placing such progress in its broader biological context.