Antisense Transcription of Retrotransposons in Drosophila: An Origin of Endogenous Small Interfering RNA Precursors

Rapid evolution of piRNA clusters in the Drosophila melanogaster ovary

The piRNA pathway is a highly conserved mechanism to repress transposable element (TE) activity in the animal germline via a specialized class of small RNAs called piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs). piRNAs are produced from discrete genomic regions called piRNA clusters (piCs). Although the molecular processes by which piCs function are relatively well understood in Drosophila melanogaster, much less is known about the origin and evolution of piCs in this or any other species. To investigate piC origin and evolution, we use a population genomic approach to compare piC activity and sequence composition across eight geographically distant strains of D. melanogaster with high-quality long-read genome assemblies. We perform annotations of ovary piCs and genome-wide TE content in each strain. Our analysis uncovers extensive variation in piC activity across strains and signatures of rapid birth and death of piCs. Most TEs inferred to be recently active show an enrichment of insertions into old and large piCs, consistent with the previously proposed "trap" model of piC evolution. In contrast, a small subset of active LTR families is enriched for the formation of new piCs, suggesting that these TEs have higher proclivity to form piCs. Thus, our findings uncover processes leading to the origin of piCs. We propose that piC evolution begins with the emergence of piRNAs from individual insertions of a few select TE families prone to seed new piCs that subsequently expand by accretion of insertions from most other TE families during evolution to form larger "trap" clusters. Our study shows that TEs themselves are the major force driving the rapid evolution of piCs.

Rapid evolution of piRNA clusters in the Drosophila melanogaster ovary

Animal genomes are parasitized by a horde of transposable elements (TEs) whose mutagenic activity can have catastrophic consequences. The piRNA pathway is a conserved mechanism to repress TE activity in the germline via a specialized class of small RNAs associated with effector Piwi proteins called piwi-associated RNAs (piRNAs). piRNAs are produced from discrete genomic regions called piRNA clusters (piCs). While piCs are generally enriched for TE sequences and the molecular processes by which they are transcribed and regulated are relatively well understood in Drosophila melanogaster, much less is known about the origin and evolution of piCs in this or any other species. To investigate piC evolution, we use a population genomics approach to compare piC activity and sequence composition across 8 geographically distant strains of D. melanogaster with high quality long-read genome assemblies. We perform extensive annotations of ovary piCs and TE content in each strain and test predictions of two proposed models of piC evolution. The 'de novo' model posits that individual TE insertions can spontaneously attain the status of a small piC to generate piRNAs silencing the entire TE family. The 'trap' model envisions large and evolutionary stable genomic clusters where TEs tend to accumulate and serves as a long-term "memory" of ancient TE invasions and produce a great variety of piRNAs protecting against related TEs entering the genome. It remains unclear which model best describes the evolution of piCs. Our analysis uncovers extensive variation in piC activity across strains and signatures of rapid birth and death of piCs in natural populations. Most TE families inferred to be recently or currently active show an enrichment of strain-specific insertions into large piCs, consistent with the trap model. By contrast, only a small subset of active LTR retrotransposon families is enriched for the formation of strain-specific piCs, suggesting that these families have an inherent proclivity to form de novo piCs. Thus, our findings support aspects of both 'de novo' and 'trap' models of piC evolution. We propose that these two models represent two extreme stages along an evolutionary continuum, which begins with the emergence of piCs de novo from a few specific LTR retrotransposon insertions that subsequently expand by accretion of other TE insertions during evolution to form larger 'trap' clusters. Our study shows that piCs are evolutionarily labile and that TEs themselves are the major force driving the formation and evolution of piCs.

Transposon control as a checkpoint for tissue regeneration

Tissue regeneration requires precise temporal control of cellular processes such as inflammatory signaling, chromatin remodeling and proliferation. The combination of these processes forms a unique microenvironment permissive to the expression, and potential mobilization of, transposable elements (TEs). Here, we develop the hypothesis that TE activation creates a barrier to tissue repair that must be overcome to achieve successful regeneration. We discuss how uncontrolled TE activity may impede tissue restoration and review mechanisms by which TE activity may be controlled during regeneration. We posit that the diversification and co-evolution of TEs and host control mechanisms may contribute to the wide variation in regenerative competency across tissues and species.

Small RNAs and their protein partners in animal meiosis

Meiosis is characterized by highly regulated transitions in gene expression that require diverse mechanisms of gene regulation. For example, in male mammals, transcription undergoes a global shut-down in early prophase I of meiosis, followed by increasing transcriptional activity into pachynema. Later, as spermiogenesis proceeds, the histones bound to DNA are replaced with transition proteins, which are themselves replaced with protamines, resulting in a highly condensed nucleus with repressed transcriptional activity. In addition, two specialized gene silencing events take place during prophase I: meiotic silencing of unsynapsed chromatin (MSUC), and the sex chromatin specific mechanism, meiotic sex chromosome inactivation (MSCI). Notably, conserved roles for the RNA binding protein (RBP) machinery that functions with small non-coding RNAs have been described as participating in these meiosis-specific mechanisms, suggesting that RNA-mediated gene regulation is critical for fertility in many species. Here, we review roles of small RNAs and their associated RBPs in meiosis-related processes such as centromere function, silencing of unpaired chromatin and meiotic recombination. We will discuss the emerging evidence of non-canonical functions of these components in meiosis.

Transposons-Based Clonal Diversity in Trematode Involves Parts of CR1 (LINE) in Eu- and Heterochromatin

Trematode parthenitae have long been believed to form clonal populations, but clonal diversity has been discovered in this asexual stage of the lifecycle. Clonal polymorphism in the model species Himasthla elongata has been previously described, but the source of this phenomenon remains unknown. In this work, we traced cercarial clonal diversity using a simplified amplified fragment length polymorphism (SAFLP) method and characterised the nature of fragments in diverse electrophoretic bands. The repetitive elements were identified in both the primary sequence of the H. elongata genome and in the transcriptome data. Long-interspersed nuclear elements (LINEs) and long terminal repeat retrotransposons (LTRs) were found to represent an overwhelming majority of the genome and the transposon transcripts. Most sequenced fragments from SAFLP pattern contained the reverse transcriptase (RT, ORF2) domains of LINEs, and only a few sequences belonged to ORFs of LTRs and ORF1 of LINEs. A fragment corresponding to a CR1-like (LINE) spacer region was discovered and named CR1-renegade (CR1-rng). In addition to RT-containing CR1 transcripts, we found short CR1-rng transcripts in the redia transcriptome and short contigs in the mobilome. Probes against CR1-RT and CR1-rng presented strikingly different pictures in FISH mapping, despite both being fragments of CR1. In silico data and Southern blotting indicated that CR1-rng is not tandemly organised. CR1 involvement in clonal diversity is discussed.

The Non-Coding RNA Landscape in IgA Nephropathy-Where Are We in 2021?

IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most commonly diagnosed primary glomerulonephritis worldwide. It is a slow progressing disease with approximately 30% of cases reaching end-stage kidney disease within 20 years of diagnosis. It is currently only diagnosed by an invasive biopsy and treatment options are limited. However, the current surge in interest in RNA interference is opening up new horizons for the use of this new technology in the field of IgAN management. A greater understanding of the fundamentals of RNA interference offers exciting possibilities both for biomarker discovery and, more importantly, for novel therapeutic approaches to target key pathogenic pathways in IgAN. This review aims to summarise the RNA interference literature in the context of microRNAs and their association with the multifaceted aspects of IgA nephropathy.

Ageing, Drosophila melanogaster and Epigenetics

Ageing is a phenomenon where the accumulation of all the stresses that alter the functions of living organisms, halter them from maintaining their physiological balance and eventually lead to death. The emergence of epigenetic tremendously contributed to the knowledge of ageing. Epigenetic changes in cells or tissues like deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) methylation, modification of histone proteins, transcriptional modification and also the involvement of non-coding DNA has been documented to be associated with ageing. In order to study ageing, scientists have taken advantage of several potential organisms to aid them in their study. Drosophila melanogaster has been an essential model in establishing current understanding of the mechanism of ageing as they possess several advantages over other competitors like having homologues to more than 75% of human disease genes, having 50% of Drosophila genes are homologues to human genes and most importantly they are genetically amenable. Here, we would like to summarise the extant knowledge about ageing and epigenetic process and the role of Drosophila as an ideal model to study epigenetics in association with ageing process.

Trafficking of siRNA precursors by the dsRBD protein Blanks in Drosophila

RNA interference targets aberrant transcripts with cognate small interfering RNAs, which derive from double-stranded RNA precursors. Several functional screens have identified Drosophila blanks/lump (CG10630) as a facilitator of RNAi, yet its molecular function has remained unknown. The protein carries two dsRNA binding domains (dsRBD) and blanks mutant males have a spermatogenesis defect. We demonstrate that blanks selectively boosts RNAi triggered by dsRNA of nuclear origin. Blanks binds dsRNA via its second dsRBD in vitro, shuttles between nucleus and cytoplasm and the abundance of siRNAs arising at many sites of convergent transcription is reduced in blanks mutants. Since features of nascent RNAs - such as introns and transcription beyond the polyA site – contribute to the small RNA pool, we propose that Blanks binds dsRNA formed by cognate nascent RNAs in the nucleus and fosters its export to the cytoplasm for dicing. We refer to the resulting small RNAs as blanks exported siRNAs (bepsiRNAs). While bepsiRNAs were fully dependent on RNA binding to the second dsRBD of blanks in transgenic flies, male fertility was not. This is consistent with a previous report that linked fertility to the first dsRBD of Blanks. The role of blanks in spermatogenesis appears thus unrelated to its role in dsRNA export.

Measuring and interpreting transposable element expression

Transposable elements (TEs) are insertional mutagens that contribute greatly to the plasticity of eukaryotic genomes, influencing the evolution and adaptation of species as well as physiology or disease in individuals. Measuring TE expression helps to understand not only when and where TE mobilization can occur but also how this process alters gene expression, chromatin accessibility or cellular signalling pathways. Although genome-wide gene expression assays such as RNA sequencing include transposon-derived transcripts, most computational analytical tools discard or misinterpret TE-derived reads. Emerging approaches are improving the identification of expressed TE loci and helping to discriminate TE transcripts that permit TE mobilization from chimeric gene-TE transcripts or pervasive transcription. Here we review the main challenges associated with the detection of TE expression, including mappability, insertional and internal sequence polymorphisms, and the diversity of the TE transcriptional landscape, as well as the different experimental and computational strategies to solve them.

Different structural variants of roo retrotransposon are active in Drosophila melanogaster

Retrotransposon roo is one of the most active elements in Drosophila melanogaster. The level of nucleotide diversity between copies of roo is very low but structural variation in the 5'-UTR is considerable. Transposition of roo at high frequency (around 5 × 10^-2 per generation) has been shown previously in the set of mutation accumulation lines named Oviedo. Here we isolated thirteen individual insertions by inverse PCR and sequenced the 5' end of the elements (between 1663 and 2039 nt) including the LTR, the 5'-UTR and a fragment of 661 nucleotides from the ORF, to study whether the new transposed copies come from a unique variant (the master copy model) or different elements are able to move (the transposon model). The elements in the Oviedo lines presented the same structural variants as the reference genome. Different structural variants were active, a behaviour compatible with the "transposon model" in which the copies localized in multiple sites in the genome are able to transpose. At the level of sequence, the copies of roo in our lines are highly similar to the elements in the reference genome. The phylogenetic tree shows a shallow diversification with unsupported nodes denoting that all the elements currently active are very young. This observation together with the great polymorphism in insertion sites implies a rapid turnover of the elements.

"What You Need, Baby, I Got It": Transposable Elements as Suppliers of Cis-Operating Sequences in Drosophila

Transposable elements (TEs) are constitutive components of both eukaryotic and prokaryotic genomes. The role of TEs in the evolution of genes and genomes has been widely assessed over the past years in a variety of model and non-model organisms. Drosophila is undoubtedly among the most powerful model organisms used for the purpose of studying the role of transposons and their effects on the stability and evolution of genes and genomes. Besides their most intuitive role as insertional mutagens, TEs can modify the transcriptional pattern of host genes by juxtaposing new cis-regulatory sequences. A key element of TE biology is that they carry transcriptional control elements that fine-tune the transcription of their own genes, but that can also perturb the transcriptional activity of neighboring host genes. From this perspective, the transposition-mediated modulation of gene expression is an important issue for the short-term adaptation of physiological functions to the environmental changes, and for long-term evolutionary changes. Here, we review the current literature concerning the regulatory and structural elements operating in cis provided by TEs in Drosophila. Furthermore, we highlight that, besides their influence on both TEs and host genes expression, they can affect the chromatin structure and epigenetic status as well as both the chromosome's structure and stability. It emerges that Drosophila is a good model organism to study the effect of TE-linked regulatory sequences, and it could help future studies on TE-host interactions in any complex eukaryotic genome.

The somatic piRNA pathway controls germline transposition over generations

Transposable elements (TEs) are parasitic DNA sequences that threaten genome integrity by replicative transposition in host gonads. The Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) pathway is assumed to maintain Drosophila genome homeostasis by downregulating transcriptional and post-transcriptional TE expression in the ovary. However, the bursts of transposition that are expected to follow transposome derepression after piRNA pathway impairment have not yet been reported. Here, we show, at a genome-wide level, that piRNA loss in the ovarian somatic cells boosts several families of the endogenous retroviral subclass of TEs, at various steps of their replication cycle, from somatic transcription to germinal genome invasion. For some of these TEs, the derepression caused by the loss of piRNAs is backed up by another small RNA pathway (siRNAs) operating in somatic tissues at the post transcriptional level. Derepressed transposition during 70 successive generations of piRNA loss exponentially increases the genomic copy number by up to 10-fold.

From Heterochromatin to Long Noncoding RNAs in Drosophila: Expanding the Arena of Gene Function and Regulation

Recent years have witnessed a remarkable interest in exploring the significance of pervasive noncoding transcripts in diverse eukaryotes. Classical cytogenetic studies using the Drosophila model system unraveled the perplexing attributes and "functions" of the "gene"-poor heterochromatin. Recent molecular studies in the fly model are likewise revealing the very diverse and significant roles played by long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) in development, gene regulation, chromatin organization, cell and nuclear architecture, etc. There has been a rapid increase in the number of identified lncRNAs, although a much larger number still remains unknown. The diversity of modes of actions and functions of the limited number of Drosophila lncRNAs, which have been examined, already reflects the profound roles of such RNAs in generating and sustaining the biological complexities of eukaryotes. Several of the known Drosophila lncRNAs originate as independent sense or antisense transcripts from promoter or intergenic, intronic, or 5'/3'-UTR regions, while many of them are independent genes that produce only lncRNAs or coding as well as noncoding RNAs. The different lncRNAs affect chromatin organization (local or large-scale pan-chromosomal), transcription, RNA processing/stability, or translation either directly through interaction with their target DNA sequences or indirectly by acting as intermediary molecules for specific regulatory proteins or may act as decoys/sinks, or storage sites for specific proteins or groups of proteins, or may provide a structural framework for the assembly of substructures in nucleus/cytoplasm. It is interesting that many of the "functions" alluded to heterochromatin in earlier cytogenetic studies appear to find correlates with the known subtle as well as far-reaching actions of the different small and long noncoding RNAs. Further studies exploiting the very rich and powerful genetic and molecular resources available for the Drosophila model are expected to unravel the mystery underlying the long reach of ncRNAs.

RNA helicase domains of viral origin in proteins of insect retrotransposons: possible source for evolutionary advantages

Recently, a novel phenomenon of horizontal gene transfer of helicase-encoding sequence from positive-stranded RNA viruses to LINE transposons in insect genomes was described. TRAS family transposons encoding an ORF2 protein, which comprised all typical functional domains and an additional helicase domain, were found to be preserved in many families during the evolution of the order Lepidoptera. In the present paper, in species of orders Hemiptera and Orthoptera, we found helicase domain-encoding sequences integrated into ORF1 of retrotransposons of the Jockey family. RNA helicases encoded by transposons of TRAS and Jockey families represented separate brunches in a phylogenetic tree of helicase domains and thus could be considered as independently originated in the evolution of insect transposons. Transcriptome database analyses revealed that both TRAS and Jockey transposons encoding the helicase domain represented transcribed genome sequences. Moreover, the transposon-encoded helicases were found to contain the full set of conserved motifs essential for their enzymatic activities. Taking into account the previously reported ability of RNA helicase encoded by TRAS ORF2 to suppress post-transcriptional RNA silencing, we propose possible scenarios of evolutionary fixation of actively expressed functional helicases of viral origin in insect retrotransposons as genetic elements advantageous for both transposons and their insect hosts.

Inhibition of RNA polymerase II allows controlled mobilisation of retrotransposons for plant breeding

Background

Retrotransposons play a central role in plant evolution and could be a powerful endogenous source of genetic and epigenetic variability for crop breeding. To ensure genome integrity several silencing mechanisms have evolved to repress retrotransposon mobility. Even though retrotransposons fully depend on transcriptional activity of the host RNA polymerase II (Pol II) for their mobility, it was so far unclear whether Pol II is directly involved in repressing their activity.

Results

Here we show that plants defective in Pol II activity lose DNA methylation at repeat sequences and produce more extrachromosomal retrotransposon DNA upon stress in Arabidopsis and rice. We demonstrate that combined inhibition of both DNA methylation and Pol II activity leads to a strong stress-dependent mobilization of the heat responsive ONSEN retrotransposon in Arabidopsis seedlings. The progenies of these treated plants contain up to 75 new ONSEN insertions in their genome which are stably inherited over three generations of selfing. Repeated application of heat stress in progeny plants containing increased numbers of ONSEN copies does not result in increased activation of this transposon compared to control lines. Progenies with additional ONSEN copies show a broad panel of environment-dependent phenotypic diversity.

Conclusions

We demonstrate that Pol II acts at the root of transposon silencing. This is important because it suggests that Pol II can regulate the speed of plant evolution by fine-tuning the amplitude of transposon mobility. Our findings show that it is now possible to study induced transposon bursts in plants and unlock their use to induce epigenetic and genetic diversity for crop breeding.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13059-017-1265-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Transposable elements in Drosophila

Transposable elements (TEs) are mobile genetic elements that can mobilize within host genomes. As TEs comprise more than 40% of the human genome and are linked to numerous diseases, understanding their mechanisms of mobilization and regulation is important. Drosophila melanogaster is an ideal model organism for the study of eukaryotic TEs as its genome contains a diverse array of active TEs. TEs universally impact host genome size via transposition and deletion events, but may also adopt unique functional roles in host organisms. There are 2 main classes of TEs: DNA transposons and retrotransposons. These classes are further divided into subgroups of TEs with unique structural and functional characteristics, demonstrating the significant variability among these elements. Despite this variability, D. melanogaster and other eukaryotic organisms utilize conserved mechanisms to regulate TEs. This review focuses on the transposition mechanisms and regulatory pathways of TEs, and their functional roles in D. melanogaster.

Drosophila melanogaster retrotransposon and inverted repeat-derived endogenous siRNAs are differentially processed in distinct cellular locations

BACKGROUND

Endogenous small interfering (esi)RNAs repress mRNA levels and retrotransposon mobility in Drosophila somatic cells by poorly understood mechanisms. 21 nucleotide esiRNAs are primarily generated from retrotransposons and two inverted repeat (hairpin) loci in Drosophila culture cells in a Dicer2 dependent manner. Additionally, proteins involved in 3' end processing, such as Symplekin, CPSF73 and CPSR100, have been recently implicated in the esiRNA pathway.

RESULTS

Here we present evidence of overlap between two essential RNA metabolic pathways: esiRNA biogenesis and mRNA 3' end processing. We have identified a nucleus-specific interaction between the essential esiRNA cleavage enzyme Dicer2 (Dcr2) and Symplekin, a component of the core cleavage complex (CCC) required for 3' end processing of all eukaryotic mRNAs. This interaction is mediated by the N-terminal 271 amino acids of Symplekin; CCC factors CPSF73 and CPSF100 do not contact Dcr2. While Dcr2 binds the CCC, Dcr2 knockdown does not affect mRNA 3' end formation. RNAi-depletion of CCC components Symplekin and CPSF73 causes perturbations in esiRNA abundance that correlate with fluctuations in retrotransposon and hairpin esiRNA precursor levels. We also discovered that esiRNAs generated from retrotransposons and hairpins have distinct physical characteristics including a higher predominance of 22 nucleotide hairpin-derived esiRNAs and differences in 3' and 5' base preference. Additionally, retrotransposon precursors and derived esiRNAs are highly enriched in the nucleus while hairpins and hairpin derived esiRNAs are predominantly cytoplasmic similar to canonical mRNAs. RNAi-depletion of either CPSF73 or Symplekin results in nuclear retention of both hairpin and retrotransposon precursors suggesting that polyadenylation indirectly affects cellular localization of Dcr2 substrates.

CONCLUSIONS

Together, these observations support a novel mechanism in which differences in localization of esiRNA precursors impacts esiRNA biogenesis. Hairpin-derived esiRNAs are generated in the cytoplasm independent of Dcr2-Symplekin interactions, while retrotransposons are processed in the nucleus.

Transposable elements: Self-seekers of the germline, team-players of the soma

The germ track is the cellular path by which genes are transmitted to future generations whereas somatic cells die with their body and do not leave direct descendants. Transposable elements (TEs) evolve to be silent in somatic cells but active in the germ track. Thus, the performance of most bodily functions by a sequestered soma reduces organismal costs of TEs. Flexible forms of gene regulation are permissible in the soma because of the self-imposed silence of TEs, but strict licensing of transcription and translation is maintained in the germ track to control proliferation of TEs. Delayed zygotic genome activation (ZGA) and maternally inherited germ granules are adaptations that enhance germ-track security. Mammalian embryos exhibit very early ZGA associated with extensive mobilization of retroelements. This window of vulnerability to retrotransposition in early embryos is an indirect consequence of evolutionary conflicts within the mammalian genome over postzygotic maternal provisioning.

Multitasking of the piRNA Silencing Machinery: Targeting Transposable Elements and Foreign Genes in the Bdelloid Rotifer Adineta vaga

RNA-mediated silencing processes play a key role in silencing of transposable elements, especially in the germ line, where piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) are responsible for suppressing transposon mobility and maintaining genome integrity. We previously reported that the genome of Adineta vaga, the first sequenced representative of the phylum Rotifera (class Bdelloidea), is characterized by massive levels of horizontal gene transfer, by unusually low transposon content, and by highly diversified RNA-mediated silencing machinery. Here, we investigate genome-wide distribution of pi-like small RNAs, which in A. vaga are 25-31 nucleotides in length and have a strong 5'-uridine bias, while lacking ping-pong amplification signatures. In agreement with expectations, 71% of mapped reads corresponded to annotated transposons, with 93% of these reads being in the antisense orientation. Unexpectedly, a significant fraction of piRNAs originate from predicted coding regions corresponding to genes of putatively foreign origin. The distribution of piRNAs across foreign genes is not biased toward 3'-UTRs, instead resembling transposons in uniform distribution pattern throughout the gene body, and in predominantly antisense orientation. We also find that genes with small RNA coverage, including a number of genes of metazoan origin, are characterized by higher occurrence of telomeric repeats in the surrounding genomic regions, and by higher density of transposons in the vicinity, which have the potential to promote antisense transcription. Our findings highlight the complex interplay between RNA-based silencing processes and acquisition of genes at the genome periphery, which can result either in their loss or eventual domestication and integration into the host genome.

Bioinformatic analyses of sense and antisense expression from terminal inverted repeat transposons in Drosophila somatic cells

Understanding regulation of transposon movement in somatic cells is important as mobile elements can cause detrimental genomic rearrangements. Generally, transposons move via one of 2 mechanisms; retrotransposons utilize an RNA intermediate, therefore copying themselves and amplifying throughout the genome, while terminal inverted repeat transposons (TIR Tns) excise DNA sequences from the genome and integrate into a new location. Our recently published work indicates that retrotransposons in Drosophila tissue culture cells are actively transcribed in the antisense direction. Our data support a model in which convergent transcription of retrotransposons from intra element transcription start sites results in complementary RNAs that hybridize to form substrates for Dicer-2, the endogenous small interfering (esi)RNA generating enzyme. Here, we extend our previous analysis to TIR Tns. In contrast to retrotransposons, our data show that antisense TIR Tn RNAs result from transcription of intronic TIR Tns oriented antisense to their host genes. Also, disproportionately less esiRNAs are generated from TIR transcripts than from retrotransposons and transcription of very few individual TIR Tns could be confirmed. Collectively, these data support a model in which TIR Tns are regulated at the level of Transposase production while retrotransposons are regulated with esiRNA post-transcriptional mechanisms in Drosophila somatic cells.