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Arkhipova IR, Yushenova IA, Rodriguez F. Shaping eukaryotic epigenetic systems by horizontal gene transfer. Bioessays 2023; 45:e2200232. [PMID: 37339822 PMCID: PMC10287040 DOI: 10.1002/bies.202200232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 05/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/22/2023]
Abstract
DNA methylation constitutes one of the pillars of epigenetics, relying on covalent bonds for addition and/or removal of chemically distinct marks within the major groove of the double helix. DNA methyltransferases, enzymes which introduce methyl marks, initially evolved in prokaryotes as components of restriction-modification systems protecting host genomes from bacteriophages and other invading foreign DNA. In early eukaryotic evolution, DNA methyltransferases were horizontally transferred from bacteria into eukaryotes several times and independently co-opted into epigenetic regulatory systems, primarily via establishing connections with the chromatin environment. While C5-methylcytosine is the cornerstone of plant and animal epigenetics and has been investigated in much detail, the epigenetic role of other methylated bases is less clear. The recent addition of N4-methylcytosine of bacterial origin as a metazoan DNA modification highlights the prerequisites for foreign gene co-option into the host regulatory networks, and challenges the existing paradigms concerning the origin and evolution of eukaryotic regulatory systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina R Arkhipova
- Marine Biological Laboratory, Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Irina A Yushenova
- Marine Biological Laboratory, Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Fernando Rodriguez
- Marine Biological Laboratory, Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA
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2
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A Survey of Transposon Landscapes in the Putative Ancient Asexual Ostracod Darwinula stevensoni. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:genes12030401. [PMID: 33799706 PMCID: PMC7998251 DOI: 10.3390/genes12030401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Revised: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 03/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
How asexual reproduction shapes transposable element (TE) content and diversity in eukaryotic genomes remains debated. We performed an initial survey of TE load and diversity in the putative ancient asexual ostracod Darwinula stevensoni. We examined long contiguous stretches of DNA in clones from a genomic fosmid library, totaling about 2.5 Mb, and supplemented these data with results on TE abundance and diversity from an Illumina draft genome. In contrast to other TE studies in putatively ancient asexuals, which revealed relatively low TE content, we found that at least 19% of the fosmid dataset and 26% of the genome assembly corresponded to known transposons. We observed a high diversity of transposon families, including LINE, gypsy, PLE, mariner/Tc, hAT, CMC, Sola2, Ginger, Merlin, Harbinger, MITEs and helitrons, with the prevalence of DNA transposons. The predominantly low levels of sequence diversity indicate that many TEs are or have recently been active. In the fosmid data, no correlation was found between telomeric repeats and non-LTR retrotransposons, which are present near telomeres in other taxa. Most TEs in the fosmid data were located outside of introns and almost none were found in exons. We also report an N-terminal Myb/SANT-like DNA-binding domain in site-specific R4/Dong non-LTR retrotransposons. Although initial results on transposable loads need to be verified with high quality draft genomes, this study provides important first insights into TE dynamics in putative ancient asexual ostracods.
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3
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Flores-Ferrer A, Nguyen A, Glémin S, Deragon JM, Panaud O, Gourbière S. The ecology of the genome and the dynamics of the biological dark matter. J Theor Biol 2021; 518:110641. [PMID: 33640450 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2021.110641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2020] [Revised: 12/28/2020] [Accepted: 02/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Transposable elements (TEs) are essential components of the eukaryotic genomes. While mostly deleterious, evidence is mounting that TEs provide the host with beneficial adaptations. How 'selfish' or 'parasitic' DNA persists until it helps species evolution is emerging as a major evolutionary puzzle, especially in asexual taxa where the lack of sex strongly impede the spread of TEs. Since occasional but unchecked TE proliferations would ultimately drive host lineages toward extinction, asexual genomes are typically predicted to be free of TEs, which contrasts with their persistence in asexual taxa. We designed innovative 'Eco-genomic' models that account for both host demography and within-host molecular mechanisms of transposition and silencing to analyze their impact on TE dynamics in asexual genome populations. We unraveled that the spread of TEs can be limited to a stable level by density-dependent purifying selection when TE copies are over-dispersed among lineages and the host demographic turn-over is fast. We also showed that TE silencing can protect host populations in two ways; by preventing TEs with weak effects to accumulate or by favoring the elimination of TEs with large effects. Our predictions may explain TE persistence in known asexual taxa that typically show fast demography and where TE copy number variation between lineages is expected. Such TE persistence in asexual taxa potentially has important implications for their evolvability and the preservation of sexual reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alheli Flores-Ferrer
- UMR5096 'Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes', Université de Perpignan Via Domitia, Perpignan, France.
| | - Anne Nguyen
- UMR5096 'Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes', Université de Perpignan Via Domitia, Perpignan, France.
| | - Sylvain Glémin
- UMR 6553 'Ecosystèmes, Biodiversité, Evolution', Université de Rennes 1, Rennes, France.
| | - Jean-Marc Deragon
- UMR5096 'Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes', Université de Perpignan Via Domitia, Perpignan, France.
| | - Olivier Panaud
- UMR5096 'Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes', Université de Perpignan Via Domitia, Perpignan, France.
| | - Sébastien Gourbière
- UMR5096 'Laboratoire Génome et Développement des Plantes', Université de Perpignan Via Domitia, Perpignan, France; Centre for the Study of Evolution, School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QG, United Kingdom.
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Nowell RW, Wilson CG, Almeida P, Schiffer PH, Fontaneto D, Becks L, Rodriguez F, Arkhipova IR, Barraclough TG. Evolutionary dynamics of transposable elements in bdelloid rotifers. eLife 2021; 10:e63194. [PMID: 33543711 PMCID: PMC7943196 DOI: 10.7554/elife.63194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2020] [Accepted: 02/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Transposable elements (TEs) are selfish genomic parasites whose ability to spread autonomously is facilitated by sexual reproduction in their hosts. If hosts become obligately asexual, TE frequencies and dynamics are predicted to change dramatically, but the long-term outcome is unclear. Here, we test current theory using whole-genome sequence data from eight species of bdelloid rotifers, a class of invertebrates in which males are thus far unknown. Contrary to expectations, we find a variety of active TEs in bdelloid genomes, at an overall frequency within the range seen in sexual species. We find no evidence that TEs are spread by cryptic recombination or restrained by unusual DNA repair mechanisms. Instead, we find that that TE content evolves relatively slowly in bdelloids and that gene families involved in RNAi-mediated TE suppression have undergone significant expansion, which might mitigate the deleterious effects of active TEs and compensate for the consequences of long-term asexuality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Reuben W Nowell
- Department of Zoology, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park CampusAscot, BerkshireUnited Kingdom
| | - Christopher G Wilson
- Department of Zoology, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park CampusAscot, BerkshireUnited Kingdom
| | - Pedro Almeida
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park CampusAscot, BerkshireUnited Kingdom
- Division of Biosciences, University College LondonLondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Philipp H Schiffer
- Institute of Zoology, Section Developmental Biology, University of Cologne, KölnWormlabGermany
| | - Diego Fontaneto
- National Research Council of Italy, Water Research InstituteVerbania PallanzaItaly
| | - Lutz Becks
- Community Dynamics Group, Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary BiologyPlönGermany
- Aquatic Ecology and Evolution, University of KonstanzKonstanzGermany
| | - Fernando Rodriguez
- Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Marine Biological LaboratoryWoods Hole, MAUnited States
| | - Irina R Arkhipova
- Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Marine Biological LaboratoryWoods Hole, MAUnited States
| | - Timothy G Barraclough
- Department of Zoology, University of OxfordOxfordUnited Kingdom
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Silwood Park CampusAscot, BerkshireUnited Kingdom
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Abstract
Transposable elements (TEs) are ubiquitous in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes, and the dynamic character of their interaction with host genomes brings about numerous evolutionary innovations and shapes genome structure and function in a multitude of ways. In traditional classification systems, TEs are often being depicted in simplistic ways, based primarily on the key enzymes required for transposition, such as transposases/recombinases and reverse transcriptases. Recent progress in whole-genome sequencing and long-read assembly, combined with expansion of the familiar range of model organisms, resulted in identification of unprecedentedly long transposable units spanning dozens or even hundreds of kilobases, initially in prokaryotic and more recently in eukaryotic systems. Here, we focus on such oversized eukaryotic TEs, including retrotransposons and DNA transposons, outline their complex and often combinatorial nature and closely intertwined relationship with viruses, and discuss their potential for participating in transfer of long stretches of DNA in eukaryotes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina R Arkhipova
- Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
- Corresponding author: E-mail:
| | - Irina A Yushenova
- Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
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Morozov SY, Lezzhov AA, Lazareva EA, Erokhina TN, Solovyev AG. Potential Role of Accessory Domains in Polyproteins Encoded by Retrotransposons in Anti-viral Defense of Host Cells. Front Microbiol 2019; 9:3193. [PMID: 30687243 PMCID: PMC6338049 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.03193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2018] [Accepted: 12/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Sergey Y Morozov
- A. N. Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.,Department of Virology, Biological Faculty, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Alexander A Lezzhov
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Ekaterina A Lazareva
- Department of Virology, Biological Faculty, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Tatiana N Erokhina
- Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Science, Moscow, Russia
| | - Andrey G Solovyev
- A. N. Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.,Department of Virology, Biological Faculty, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.,Institute of Molecular Medicine, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Moscow, Russia
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Krupovic M, Blomberg J, Coffin JM, Dasgupta I, Fan H, Geering AD, Gifford R, Harrach B, Hull R, Johnson W, Kreuze JF, Lindemann D, Llorens C, Lockhart B, Mayer J, Muller E, Olszewski NE, Pappu HR, Pooggin MM, Richert-Pöggeler KR, Sabanadzovic S, Sanfaçon H, Schoelz JE, Seal S, Stavolone L, Stoye JP, Teycheney PY, Tristem M, Koonin EV, Kuhn JH. Ortervirales: New Virus Order Unifying Five Families of Reverse-Transcribing Viruses. J Virol 2018; 92:e00515-18. [PMID: 29618642 PMCID: PMC5974489 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.00515-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Mart Krupovic
- Department of Microbiology, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France
| | - Jonas Blomberg
- Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - John M Coffin
- Department of Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Indranil Dasgupta
- Department of Plant Molecular Biology, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India
| | - Hung Fan
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Andrew D Geering
- Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Robert Gifford
- MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Balázs Harrach
- Institute for Veterinary Medical Research, Centre for Agricultural Research, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Roger Hull
- Child Okeford, Blandford Forum, Dorset, United Kingdom
| | - Welkin Johnson
- Biology Department, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jan F Kreuze
- Crop and System Sciences Division, International Potato Center (CIP), Lima, Peru
| | - Dirk Lindemann
- Institute of Virology, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Carlos Llorens
- Biotechvana, Parc Cientific, Universitat de Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Ben Lockhart
- Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
| | - Jens Mayer
- Institute of Human Genetics, University of Saarland, Homburg, Germany
| | - Emmanuelle Muller
- CIRAD, UMR BGPI, Montpellier, France
- BGPI, Université Montpellier, CIRAD, INRA, Montpellier SupAgro, Montpellier, France
| | - Neil E Olszewski
- Department of Microbial and Plant Biology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
| | - Hanu R Pappu
- Department of Plant Pathology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
| | | | - Katja R Richert-Pöggeler
- Julius Kühn-Institut, Institute for Epidemiology and Pathogen Diagnostics, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Sead Sabanadzovic
- Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, Mississippi, USA
| | - Hélène Sanfaçon
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Summerland Research and Development Centre, Summerland, BC, Canada
| | - James E Schoelz
- Division of Plant Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
| | - Susan Seal
- Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Chatham, Kent, United Kingdom
| | - Livia Stavolone
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto per la Protezione Sostenibile delle Piante, Bari, Italy
- International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan, Nigeria
| | - Jonathan P Stoye
- The Francis Crick Institute and Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Pierre-Yves Teycheney
- CIRAD, UMR AGAP, Capesterre Belle Eau, Guadeloupe, France
- AGAP, Université Montpellier, CIRAD, INRA, Montpellier SupAgro, Montpellier, France
| | - Michael Tristem
- Imperial College London, Silwood Park Campus, Ascot, Berkshire, United Kingdom
| | - Eugene V Koonin
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Jens H Kuhn
- Integrated Research Facility at Fort Detrick, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland, USA
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Arkhipova IR. Using bioinformatic and phylogenetic approaches to classify transposable elements and understand their complex evolutionary histories. Mob DNA 2017; 8:19. [PMID: 29225705 PMCID: PMC5718144 DOI: 10.1186/s13100-017-0103-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2017] [Accepted: 11/28/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent years, much attention has been paid to comparative genomic studies of transposable elements (TEs) and the ensuing problems of their identification, classification, and annotation. Different approaches and diverse automated pipelines are being used to catalogue and categorize mobile genetic elements in the ever-increasing number of prokaryotic and eukaryotic genomes, with little or no connectivity between different domains of life. Here, an overview of the current picture of TE classification and evolutionary relationships is presented, updating the diversity of TE types uncovered in sequenced genomes. A tripartite TE classification scheme is proposed to account for their replicative, integrative, and structural components, and the need to expand in vitro and in vivo studies of their structural and biological properties is emphasized. Bioinformatic studies have now become front and center of novel TE discovery, and experimental pursuits of these discoveries hold great promise for both basic and applied science.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina R Arkhipova
- Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA 02543 USA
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9
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Arkhipova IR, Yushenova IA, Rodriguez F. Giant Reverse Transcriptase-Encoding Transposable Elements at Telomeres. Mol Biol Evol 2017; 34:2245-2257. [PMID: 28575409 PMCID: PMC5850863 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msx159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Transposable elements are omnipresent in eukaryotic genomes and have a profound impact on chromosome structure, function and evolution. Their structural and functional diversity is thought to be reasonably well-understood, especially in retroelements, which transpose via an RNA intermediate copied into cDNA by the element-encoded reverse transcriptase, and are characterized by a compact structure. Here, we report a novel type of expandable eukaryotic retroelements, which we call Terminons. These elements can attach to G-rich telomeric repeat overhangs at the chromosome ends, in a process apparently facilitated by complementary C-rich repeats at the 3′-end of the RNA template immediately adjacent to a hammerhead ribozyme motif. Terminon units, which can exceed 40 kb in length, display an unusually complex and diverse structure, and can form very long chains, with host genes often captured between units. As the principal polymerizing component, Terminons contain Athena reverse transcriptases previously described in bdelloid rotifers and belonging to the enigmatic group of Penelope-like elements, but can additionally accumulate multiple cooriented ORFs, including DEDDy 3′-exonucleases, GDSL esterases/lipases, GIY-YIG-like endonucleases, rolling-circle replication initiator (Rep) proteins, and putatively structural ORFs with coiled-coil motifs and transmembrane domains. The extraordinary length and complexity of Terminons and the high degree of interfamily variability in their ORF content challenge the current views on the structural organization of eukaryotic retroelements, and highlight their possible connections with the viral world and the implications for the elevated frequency of gene transfer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina R Arkhipova
- Marine Biological Laboratory, Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Woods Hole, MA
| | - Irina A Yushenova
- Marine Biological Laboratory, Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Woods Hole, MA
| | - Fernando Rodriguez
- Marine Biological Laboratory, Josephine Bay Paul Center for Comparative Molecular Biology and Evolution, Woods Hole, MA
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