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Insertion sequence inversions mediated by ectopic recombination between terminal inverted repeats.

Alison Ling¹, Richard Cordaux

¹Université de Poitiers, CNRS UMR 6556 Ecologie, Evolution, Symbiose, Poitiers, France.

|December 29, 2010

Summary

Transposable elements called insertion sequences (IS) can invert within bacterial genomes. This discovery reveals a new mechanism for bacterial genomic variation and structural changes.

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Area of Science:

Genetics
Microbiology
Molecular Biology

Background:

Transposable elements, including DNA transposons, are significant drivers of genomic variation in prokaryotes and eukaryotes.
Ectopic recombination between transposable element copies can lead to genomic rearrangements, with potential recombination occurring within homologous sequences like terminal inverted repeats (TIRs).
Inversions mediated by TIR-TIR recombination are predicted for DNA transposons but have been rarely observed.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate and report natural inversions of bacterial insertion sequences (IS) mediated by TIR-TIR recombination.
To assess the frequency and implications of IS inversions in bacterial genomes.
To uncover novel mechanisms of structural variation in prokaryotic transposable elements.

Main Methods:

Investigated IS insertion loci in Wolbachia bacteria.
Analyzed genomic DNA for evidence of inversions.
Identified recombination events between terminal inverted repeats (TIRs) of insertion sequences.

Main Results:

Natural inversions mediated by TIR-TIR recombination were identified in 9% of investigated IS insertion loci in Wolbachia.
This suggests that IS TIR-TIR recombination is a potentially common source of genomic diversity in bacteria.
The study provides the first report of TIR-TIR recombination within bacterial IS elements.

Conclusions:

IS inversions represent a novel mechanism of structural variation in prokaryotic transposable elements.
These inversions may impact IS proliferation and host genome stability by altering transpositional activity and recombination outcomes.
The findings highlight an overlooked source of genomic diversity in bacteria.