Somatic excision of the Mu1 transposable element of maize

Doseff, A., Martienssen, R., Sundaresan, V. (February 1991) Somatic excision of the Mu1 transposable element of maize. Nucleic Acids Research, 19 (3). pp. 579-584. ISSN 0305-1048

URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1849263
DOI: 10.1093/nar/19.3.579

Abstract

The Mu transposons of the Robertson's Mutator transposable element system in maize are unusual in many respects, when compared to the other known plant transposon systems. The excision of these elements occurs late in somatic tissues and very rarely in the germ line. Unlike the other plant transposons, there is no experimental evidence directly linking Mu element excision and integration. We have analyzed the excision products generated by a Mu1 transposon inserted into the bronze 1 locus of maize. We find that the excision products or 'footprints' left by the Mu1 element resemble those of the other plant transposable elements, rather than those of the animal transposable element systems. We also find some novel types of footprints resembling recombinational events. We suggest that the Mu1 element can promote intrachromosomal crossovers and conversions near its site of insertion, and that this may be another mechanism by which tranposons can accelerate the evolution of genomes.

Item Type: Paper
Uncontrolled Keywords: mutator activity dna transposition sequence generate alleles zea
Subjects: bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > DNA expression
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification
organism description > plant > maize
bioinformatics > genomics and proteomics > genetics & nucleic acid processing > DNA, RNA structure, function, modification > DNA expression > transposable elements
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL labs > Martienssen lab
Depositing User: Matt Covey
Date: February 1991
Date Deposited: 13 Dec 2013 16:39
Last Modified: 13 Dec 2013 16:39
PMCID: PMC333651
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/28972

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