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SINEs and LINEs share common 3' sequences: a review
1Faculty of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan. nokada@bio.titech.ac.jp
Gene
|February 14, 1998
Summary
Short interspersed elements (SINEs) can originate from long interspersed nuclear elements (LINEs). This review explores the common architecture of SINEs and LINEs, suggesting a mechanism for SINE retropositional activity.
Area of Science:
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Short interspersed nuclear elements (SINEs) are non-autonomous retroposons.
- The 3' ends of some SINEs are known to be derived from the 3' ends of long interspersed nuclear elements (LINEs).
- Previous examples include sequences from diverse taxa like turtles, fish, mammals, and plants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the generality of the SINE-LINE 3' end architecture.
- To present new examples of SINE-LINE pairs.
- To propose a general scheme for SINE retropositional activity.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and analysis of existing sequence data.
- Identification and characterization of novel SINE-LINE pairs.
- Comparative sequence analysis.
Main Results:
- Five examples of SINEs derived from LINEs were previously reported.
- This review adds new examples, including complete and probable SINE-LINE pairs from multiple laboratories.
- The conserved 3' end architecture between SINEs and LINEs is further supported.
Conclusions:
- The shared 3' end structure between SINEs and LINEs is a common feature across various species.
- This organization provides a foundation for understanding how SINEs gain retropositional capabilities.
- A simple, general mechanism for SINE retroposition is proposed based on this architecture.