Transposable elements: multifunctional players in the plant genome

Abstract

Transposable elements (TEs) are indispensable components of eukaryotic genomes that play diverse roles in gene regulation, recombination, and environmental adaptation. Their ability to mobilize within the genome leads to gene expression and DNA structure changes. TEs serve as valuable markers for genetic and evolutionary studies and facilitate genetic mapping and phylogenetic analysis. They also provide insight into how organisms adapt to a changing environment by promoting gene rearrangements that lead to new gene combinations. These repetitive sequences significantly impact genome structure, function and evolution. This review takes a comprehensive look at TEs and their applications in biotechnology, particularly in the context of plant biology, where they are now considered “genomic gold” due to their extensive functionalities. The article addresses various aspects of TEs in plant development, including their structure, epigenetic regulation, evolutionary patterns, and their use in gene editing and plant molecular markers. The goal is to systematically understand TEs and shed light on their diverse roles in plant biology.

Transposable elements in Rosaceae: insights into genome evolution, expression dynamics, and syntenic gene regulation

“…Generally, Class I elements are comprised of five orders, named long terminal repeat retrotransposons (LTR–RTs), DIRS -like elements, Penelope-like elements, LINEs (long interspersed nuclear elements), and SINEs (short interspersed nuclear elements) [ 10 ]. Depending on the distinct mechanisms of integration, Class I elements can be divided into LTR retrotransposons and non-LTR retrotransposons [ 1 , 13 ]. Among the numerous superfamilies of LTR retrotransposons, the most common are the Copia (RLC) and Gypsy (RLG) superfamilies.…”