Publication

Mix-and-match between transposable elements and zinc finger proteins fuels genic and regulatory innovation

2025

Abstract

Transposable elements (TEs) are abundant and dynamic components of eukaryotic genomes, subject to regulation by equally adaptive regulatory systems. A coevolution of TEs and zinc finger genes can be documented throughout metazoan evolution. In humans, TEs account for half of the genome, and nearly all TE subfamilies are preferentially bound by at least one of the approximately 400 KRAB zinc finger proteins (ZFPs). The majority of human KRAB-ZFPs appear to tame the cis -regulatory activities of TEs, thereby facilitating their integration within gene regulatory networks. In turn, throughout vertebrate evolution, TE protein domains have fused repeatedly with ZFPs to give rise to new classes of regulatory proteins. Thus, the TE–ZFP interplay has been a powerful catalyst of biological innovation.

Official source

https://infoscience.epfl.ch/entities/publication/b4627e4f-e16b-4179-b1dc-b613c833a5d8

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2025

Abstract

Official source

https://infoscience.epfl.ch/entities/publication/b4627e4f-e16b-4179-b1dc-b613c833a5d8

About this result

Related concepts (28)

Cis-regulatory element

Cis-regulatory elements (CREs) or Cis''-regulatory modules (CRMs) are regions of non-coding DNA which regulate the transcription of neighboring genes. CREs are vital components of genetic regulatory networks, which in turn control morphogenesis, the development of anatomy, and other aspects of embryonic development, studied in evolutionary developmental biology. CREs are found in the vicinity of the genes that they regulate. CREs typically regulate gene transcription by binding to transcription factors.

Regulatory sequence

A regulatory sequence is a segment of a nucleic acid molecule which is capable of increasing or decreasing the expression of specific genes within an organism. Regulation of gene expression is an essential feature of all living organisms and viruses. In DNA, regulation of gene expression normally happens at the level of RNA biosynthesis (transcription). It is accomplished through the sequence-specific binding of proteins (transcription factors) that activate or inhibit transcription.

Gene regulatory network

A gene (or genetic) regulatory network (GRN) is a collection of molecular regulators that interact with each other and with other substances in the cell to govern the gene expression levels of mRNA and proteins which, in turn, determine the function of the cell. GRN also play a central role in morphogenesis, the creation of body structures, which in turn is central to evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo).

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Mix-and-match between transposable elements and zinc finger proteins fuels genic and regulatory innovation

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