Invasion of Drosophila virilis by the Penelope transposable element

The Penelope family of transposable elements (TEs) is broadly distributed in most species of the virilis species group of Drosophila. This element plays a pivotal role in hybrid dysgenesis in Drosophila virilis, in which at least four additional TE families are also activated. Here we present eviden...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Chromosoma 2000, Vol.109 (5), p.350-357
Main Authors: Evgen'ev, Michael, Zelentsova, Helena, Mnjoian, Liza, Poluectova, Helena, Kidwell, Margaret G
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Chimera
chromosomes
DNA Transposable Elements
Drosophila - genetics
Drosophila virilis
Gene Dosage
Gene Frequency
Genomics
geographical distribution
Geography
hybrid dysgenesis
Insects
Invasions
transposon Penelope
transposon Ulysses
transposons
Uzbekistan
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The Penelope family of transposable elements (TEs) is broadly distributed in most species of the virilis species group of Drosophila. This element plays a pivotal role in hybrid dysgenesis in Drosophila virilis, in which at least four additional TE families are also activated. Here we present evidence that the Penelope family of elements has recently invaded D. virilis. This evidence includes: (1) a patchy geographical distribution, (2) genomic locations mainly restricted to euchromatic chromosome arms in various geographical strains, and (3) a high level of nucleotide similarity among members of the family. Two samples from a Tashkent (Middle Asia) population of D. virilis provide further support for the invasion hypothesis. The 1968 Tashkent strain is free of Penelope sequences, but all individuals collected from a 1997 population carry at least five Penelope copies. Furthermore, a second TE, Ulysses, has amplified and spread in this population. These results provide evidence for the Penelope invasion of a D. virilis natural population and the mobilization of unrelated resident transposons following the invasion.
ISSN:0009-5915
1432-0886
DOI:10.1007/s004120000086