Abstract
Under selective pressure to contain the harmful effects of transposition, genomes have evolved multiple RNA-based mechanisms for regulating transposable elements (TEs). In this chapter, we describe a number of examples of RNA-based TE defense mechanisms. Once established, these RNA-mediated TE silencing mechanisms, such as RNA interference by miRNAs, may come to be used to regulate host genes. It is becoming possible to reconstruct evolutionary transitions demonstrating how specific TE defense mechanisms were co-opted to provide additional regulatory complexity for host genes. For instance, we have recently shown how miRNAs may have evolved from siRNA encoding TEs. Here we propose another specific model, the transcript infection model, whereby TE insertion dynamics can couple RNA-mediated repression mechanisms to the regulation of host genes.
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Jordan, I.K., Miller, W.J. (2008). Genome Defense Against Transposable Elements and the Origins of Regulatory RNA. In: Lankenau, DH., Volff, JN. (eds) Transposons and the Dynamic Genome. Genome Dynamics and Stability, vol 4. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/7050_2008_041
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/7050_2008_041
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