Selection against transposable elements in D. simulans and D. melanogaster

Transposable elements in individual genotypes of Drosophila simulans

Transposable elements are abundant, dynamic components of the genome that affect organismal phenotypes and fitness. In Drosophila melanogaster, they have increased in abundance as the species spread out of Africa, and different populations differ in their transposable element content. However, very little is currently known about how transposable elements differ between individual genotypes, and how that relates to the population dynamics of transposable elements overall. The sister species of D. melanogaster, D. simulans, has also recently become cosmopolitan, and panels of inbred genotypes exist from cosmopolitan and African flies. Therefore, we can determine whether the differences in colonizing populations are repeated in D. simulans, what the dynamics of transposable elements are in individual genotypes, and how that compares to wild flies. After estimating copy number in cosmopolitan and African D. simulans, I find that transposable element load is higher in flies from cosmopolitan populations. In addition, transposable element load varies considerably between populations, between genotypes, but not overall between wild and inbred lines. Certain genotypes either contain active transposable elements or are more permissive of transposition and accumulate copies of particular transposable elements. Overall, it is important to quantify genotype-specific transposable element dynamics as well as population averages to understand the dynamics of transposable element accumulation over time.

Comparative analysis of transposable elements in the melanogaster subgroup sequenced genomes

Transposable elements (TEs) are indwelling components of genomes, and their dynamics have been a driving force in genome evolution. Although we now have more information concerning their amounts and characteristics in various organisms, we still have little data from overall comparisons of their sequences in very closely-related species. While the Drosophila melanogaster genome has been extensively studied, we have only limited knowledge regarding the precise TE sequences in the genomes of the related species Drosophila simulans, Drosophila sechellia and Drosophila yakuba. In this study we analyzed the number and structure of TE copies in the sequenced genomes of these four species. Our findings show that, unexpectedly, the number of TE insertions in D. simulans is greater than that in D. melanogaster, but that most of the copies in D. simulans are degraded and in small fragments, as in D. sechellia and D. yakuba. This suggests that all three species were invaded by numerous TEs a long time ago, but have since regulated their activity, as the present TE copies are degraded, with very few full-length elements. In contrast, in D. melanogaster, a recent activation of TEs has resulted in a large number of almost-identical TE copies. We have detected variants of some TEs in D. simulans and D. sechellia, that are almost identical to the reference TE sequences in D. melanogaster, suggesting that D. melanogaster has recently been invaded by active TE variants from the other species. Our results indicate that the three species D. simulans, D. sechellia, and D. yakuba seem to be at a different stage of their TE life cycle when compared to D. melanogaster. Moreover, we show that D. melanogaster has been invaded by active TE variants for several TE families likely to come from D. simulans or the ancestor of D. simulans and D. sechellia. The numerous horizontal transfer events implied to explain these results could indicate introgression events between these species.

Ongoing loss of the tirant transposable element in natural populations of Drosophila simulans

Tirant is a long terminal repeat (LTR) retrotransposon with an average of 11 insertion sites on the chromosome arms of Drosophila melanogaster flies collected from natural populations worldwide. In the sibling species Drosophila simulans, tirant is found only in African populations, which harbor a few insertion sites (1 to 5) on the chromosome arms, although some tirant sequences are present in the heterochromatin of most populations. This distribution in D. simulans reflects either the recent genomic invasion of African populations by a new variant of tirant, or a loss of tirant from the entire species apart from some sequence relics still present in Africa. In an attempt to clarify the situation, we focused on the LTR-UTR region of tirant copies from various populations of both D. melanogaster and D. simulans. We found two distinct types of regulatory region: one type was present in both D. melanogaster and D. simulans, and the other was present only in D. simulans. Copies of this latter type of tirant were transcriptionally inactive in gonads. Here we propose that the present day distribution of tirant in D. simulans populations reflects an ancient invasion of D. simulans by tirant copies followed by the loss of active copies from most populations, apart from the African ones, suggesting that this loss is still ongoing in this species.

New regulatory regions of Drosophila 412 retrotransposable element generated by recombination

There are no doubts that transposable elements (TEs) have greatly influenced genomes evolution. They have, however, evolved in different ways throughout mammals, plants, and invertebrates. In mammals they have been shown to be widely present but with low transposition activity; in plants they are responsible for large increases in genome size. In Drosophila, despite their low amount, transposition seems to be higher. Therefore, to understand how these elements have evolved in different genomes and how host genomes have proposed to go around them, are major questions on genome evolution. We analyzed sequences of the retrotransposable elements 412 in natural populations of the Drosophila simulans and D. melanogaster species that greatly differ in their amount of TEs. We identified new subfamilies of this element that were the result of mutation or insertion-deletion process, but also of interfamily recombinations. These new elements were well conserved in the D. simulans natural populations. The new regulatory regions produced by recombination could give rise to new elements able to overcome host control of transposition and, thus, become potential genome invaders.

Copy number of P elements, KP/full-sized P element ratio and their relationships with environmental factors in Brazilian Drosophila melanogaster populations

The P transposable element copy numbers and the KP/full-sized P element ratios were determined in eight Brazilian strains of Drosophila melanogaster. Strains from tropical regions showed lower overall P element copy numbers than did strains from temperate regions. Variable numbers of full-sized and defective elements were detected, but the full-sized P and KP elements were the predominant classes of elements in all strains. The full-sized P and KP element ratios were calculated and compared with latitude. The northernmost and southernmost Brazilian strains showed fewer full-sized elements than KP elements per genome, and the strains from less extreme latitudes had many more full-sized P than KP elements. However, no clinal variation was observed. Strains from different localities, previously classified as having P cytotype, displayed a higher or a lower proportion of KP elements than of full-sized P elements, as well as an equal number of the two element types, showing that the same phenotype may be produced by different underlying genomic components of the P-M system.

On the abundance and distribution of transposable elements in the genome of Drosophila melanogaster

The abundance and distribution of transposable elements (TEs) in a representative part of the euchromatic genome of Drosophila melanogaster were studied by analyzing the sizes and locations of TEs of all known families in the genomic sequences of chromosomes 2R, X, and 4. TEs contribute to up to 2% of the sequenced DNA, which corresponds roughly to the euchromatin of these chromosomes. This estimate is lower than that previously available from in situ data and suggests that TEs accumulate in the heterochromatin more intensively than was previously thought. We have also found that TEs are not distributed at random in the chromosomes and that their abundance is more strongly associated with local recombination rates, rather than with gene density. The results are compatible with the ectopic exchange model, which proposes that selection against deleterious effects of chromosomal rearrangements is a major force opposing element spread in the genome of this species. Selection against insertional mutations also influences the observed patterns, such as an absence of insertions in coding regions. The results of the analyses are discussed in the light of recent findings on the distribution of TEs in other species.

The transposable elements of the Drosophila melanogaster euchromatin: a genomics perspective

BACKGROUND

Transposable elements are found in the genomes of nearly all eukaryotes. The recent completion of the Release 3 euchromatic genomic sequence of Drosophila melanogaster by the Berkeley Drosophila Genome Project has provided precise sequence for the repetitive elements in the Drosophila euchromatin. We have used this genomic sequence to describe the euchromatic transposable elements in the sequenced strain of this species.

RESULTS

We identified 85 known and eight novel families of transposable element varying in copy number from one to 146. A total of 1,572 full and partial transposable elements were identified, comprising 3.86% of the sequence. More than two-thirds of the transposable elements are partial. The density of transposable elements increases an average of 4.7 times in the centromere-proximal regions of each of the major chromosome arms. We found that transposable elements are preferentially found outside genes; only 436 of 1,572 transposable elements are contained within the 61.4 Mb of sequence that is annotated as being transcribed. A large proportion of transposable elements is found nested within other elements of the same or different classes. Lastly, an analysis of structural variation from different families reveals distinct patterns of deletion for elements belonging to different classes.

CONCLUSIONS

This analysis represents an initial characterization of the transposable elements in the Release 3 euchromatic genomic sequence of D. melanogaster for which comparison to the transposable elements of other organisms can begin to be made. These data have been made available on the Berkeley Drosophila Genome Project website for future analyses.

Transposons but not retrotransposons are located preferentially in regions of high recombination rate in Caenorhabditis elegans

We analyzed the distribution of transposable elements (TEs: transposons, LTR retrotransposons, and non-LTR retrotransposons) in the chromosomes of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. The density of transposons (DNA-based elements) along the chromosomes was found to be positively correlated with recombination rate, but this relationship was not observed for LTR or non-LTR retrotransposons (RNA-based elements). Gene (coding region) density is higher in regions of low recombination rate. However, the lower TE density in these regions is not due to the counterselection of TE insertions within exons since the same positive correlation between TE density and recombination rate was found in noncoding regions (both in introns and intergenic DNA). These data are not compatible with a global model of selection acting against TE insertions, for which an accumulation of elements in regions of reduced recombination is expected. We also found no evidence for a stronger selection against TE insertions on the X chromosome compared to the autosomes. The difference in distribution of the DNA and RNA-based elements along the chromosomes in relation to recombination rate can be explained by differences in the transposition processes.

Polymorphism in structure of the retrotransposable element 412 in Drosophila simulans and D. melanogaster populations

The structure of the 412 retrotransposable element was investigated in various natural populations of D. melanogaster and D. simulans by a restriction enzyme analysis. We show that although the canonical structure of the 412 element was the same in both species, a high structural polymorphism existed with various rearranged elements. A 412 family was thus composed of heterogeneous copies of different sizes, with a large proportion of full-size copies. D. simulans had more rearranged copies than D. melanogaster, with some specific copies, such as a 5.6-kb BsrBI fragment, present in all populations of D. simulans. Full-size and rearranged copies were detected in both the euchromatin and the heterochromatin, with many rearranged copies in D. simulans, suggesting a recent mobilization of the 412 element in this species.

Molecular identification of the active ninja retrotransposon and the inactive aurora element in Drosophila simulans and D. melanogaster

How transposable elements evolve is a key facet in understanding of spontaneous mutation and genomic rearrangements in various organisms. One of the best ways to approach this question is to study a newly evolved transposable element whose presence is restricted to a specific population or strain. The retrotransposons ninja and aurora may provide insights into the process of their evolution, because of their contrasting characteristics, even though they show high sequence identity. The ninja retrotransposon was found in a Drosophila simulans strain in high copy number and is potent in transposition. On the other hand, aurora elements are distributed widely among the species belonging to the Drosophila melanogaster species complex, but are immobile at least in D. melanogaster. In order to distinguish the two closely resembled retrotransposons by molecular means, we determined and compared DNA sequence of the elements, and identified characteristic internal deletions and nucleotide substitutions in 5'-long terminal repeats (LTR). Analyses of the structure of ninja homologs and LTR sequences amplified from both genomic and cloned DNA revealed that the actively transposable ninja elements were present only in D. simulans strains, but inactive aurora elements exist in both D. melanogaster and D. simulans.

A temperature cline in copy number for 412 but not roo/B104 retrotransposons in populations of Drosophila simulans

The copy number of the retrotransposable element 412 of Drosophila simulans from populations collected worldwide shows a negative correlation with minimum temperature. No association was detected for the roo/B104 element. The possibility that selective pressures might regulate the 412 copy number in these natural populations is supported by detection of selection against the detrimental effects of 412 insertions (estimated by the proportion of insertions on the X chromosome in comparison with the autosomes) but not roo/B104. These data reveal different spatial patterns for two element families, and strongly suggest that some factors in the environment, such as temperature, may interfere with the control of retrotransposition, thus affecting important aspects of genomic evolution.

Chromosomal distribution of the 412 retrotransposon in natural populations of Drosophila simulans

The insertion site localization of the 412 retrotransposable element was analysed by in situ hybridization to the polytene chromosomes of 57 individual genomes from 25 natural populations of Drosophila simulans. The 412 insertion sites along the chromosomes show a tendency to aggregate in the distal and proximal ends of the 2R arm, and in several local regions along the 3R arm. The distribution of the 412 insertion sites, weighted by DNA content, along the chromosome arms reveals an overall tendency for the site number to increase from the middle of the arm to the base and tip, with a decrease at the tips, especially pronounced for the X chromosome. Such a distribution differs slightly from that of D. melanogaster, which globally shows an increase of the 412 site number from base to tip of the chromosome arms, indicating differing behaviour of the 412 element in the two species. These results are discussed in connection with the recombination rate along the chromosome arms.