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Transposable Elements in Model Organisms

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The Editors of Mobile DNA are seeking a series of review papers focused on transposable elements (TE) in model organisms.

This series will deliver:

  1. A comprehensive and even coverage of the diversity of TEs populating the model species: 
    1. What are the known types of TEs in this species? Please include a description of the structure and coding capacity of ‘classic’ representative elements (e.g. gypsy, copia, P element, etc in Drosophila) 
    2. Relative abundance of each major type in the genome (ideally based on Repeatmasking of the reference genome)
    3. Any remarkable features about their chromosomal distribution (are they found evenly throughout the genome or concentrated in particular areas)
    4. Level of recent/current activity based on de novo insertions, level of insertion polymorphisms, demographic (age) analysis etc.
    5. Peculiar features in the evolution of TEs well documented for that species (e.g. many TEs in Drosophila are known to have been introduced horizontally)
  2. An overview of the forces and mechanisms known to modulate TE activity in this species (e.g., small RNAs and other host factors, environmental factors such as stress/temperature, population genetics of the species). 
  3. An overview (a few classic examples) of the impact of TEs in genome evolution in this species or its close relatives (e.g., telomeric retroelements in Drosophila)  
  4. Outstanding questions and future directions with the study of TEs in this species — what unique opportunities has this model to offer?

There will be no restriction on the length, number of display items, and number of references. In summary, the editors hope for an authoritative, in-depth review that will become a go-to resource for many years to come for those working with these organisms and wanting to know more about the TE content of their favorite species. The review paper should also be accessible to a broad audience of geneticists and molecular biologists, and not geared toward TE experts only. 

This collection of articles has not been sponsored and articles have undergone the journal’s standard peer-review process. The Guest Editors declare no competing interests.

View all collections published in Mobile DNA.

  1. Transposable elements are ubiquitous and play a fundamental role in shaping genomes during evolution. Since excessive transposition can be mutagenic, mechanisms exist in the cells to keep these mobile elements...

    Authors: Anastasia Barkova, Indranil Adhya, Christine Conesa, Amna Asif-Laidin, Amandine Bonnet, Elise Rabut, Carine Chagneau, Pascale Lesage and Joël Acker
    Citation: Mobile DNA 2022 13:26
    Content type: Research Published on:

  2. Mobile group I introns encode homing endonucleases that confer intron mobility initiated by a double-strand break in the intron-lacking allele at the site of insertion. Nuclear ribosomal DNA of some fungi and ...

    Authors: Kjersti Lian, Betty M. N. Furulund, Anders A. Tveita, Peik Haugen and Steinar D. Johansen
    Citation: Mobile DNA 2022 13:23
    Content type: Research Published on:

  3. Type 1 long interspersed elements, or LINE-1, are the only retroelements that replicate autonomously in human cells. The retrotransposition process of LINE-1 can trigger the activation of the innate immune sys...

    Authors: Jiaxiu Yan, Yifei Zhao, Juan Du, Yu Wang, Shaohua Wang, Qing Wang, Xu Zhao, Wei Xu and Ke Zhao
    Citation: Mobile DNA 2022 13:10
    Content type: Research Published on:

  5. Drosophila has been studied as a biological model for many years and many discoveries in biology rely on this species. Research on transposable elements (TEs) is not an exception. Drosophila has contributed signi...

    Authors: Vincent Mérel, Matthieu Boulesteix, Marie Fablet and Cristina Vieira
    Citation: Mobile DNA 2020 11:23
    Content type: Review Published on: