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Posttraumatic regeneration involves differential expression of long terminal repeat (LTR) retrotransposons
Author(s) -
Mashanov Vladimir S.,
Zueva Olga R.,
GarcíaArrarás José E.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
developmental dynamics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.634
H-Index - 141
eISSN - 1097-0177
pISSN - 1058-8388
DOI - 10.1002/dvdy.23844
Subject(s) - retrotransposon , biology , long terminal repeat , regeneration (biology) , context (archaeology) , transcriptome , genetics , microbiology and biotechnology , gene expression , gene , transposable element , genome , paleontology
Background: Retrotransposons are mobile genetic elements that constitute a sizable proportion of eukaryote genomes. Although retroelements are known to play significant roles in embryogenesis, stress reactions, and disease progression, they have never been studied in the context of animal regeneration. Results: In this study, high‐throughput transcriptome analysis revealed unexpectedly large‐scale changes in transcriptional activity of retrotransposons in regenerating radial organs of the sea cucumber Holothuria glaberrima . In particular, we identified 36 long terminal repeat (LTR) retroelements, of which 20 showed significant changes in their expression during regeneration (11 up‐regulated, 8 down‐regulated, and one was initially up‐regulated, but later down‐regulated). We then studied in detail the most significantly up‐regulated element, Gypsy‐1_Hg . This transposon showed a drastic (>50‐fold) increase in expression in regeneration and started to return to the normal levels only after the anatomical organization of the injured tissues was restored. All cells expressing Gypsy‐1_Hg were located in the vicinity of the wound and included glia and neurons of the radial nerve. The retrotransposon‐expressing cells survived programmed cell death and contributed to regeneration. Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate considerable changes in transcriptional activity of retrotransposons (both over‐expression and down‐regulation) associated with posttraumatic regeneration in an echinoderm. Developmental Dynamics 241:1625–1636, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.