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- Title
L1 retrotransposition is suppressed by endogenously encoded small interfering RNAs in human cultured cells.
- Authors
Yang, Nuo; Kazazian Jr., Haig H.
- Abstract
LINE-1s, or L1s, are highly abundant retrotransposons comprising 17% of the human genome. Most L1s are retrotransposition defective; nonetheless, there are ∼100 full-length L1s potentially capable of retrotransposition in the diploid genome. L1 retrotransposition may be detrimental to the host and thus needs to be controlled. Previous studies have identified sense and antisense promoters in the 5′ UTR of full-length human L1. Here we show that the resulting bidirectional transcripts can be processed to small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) that suppress retrotransposition by an RNA interference (RNAi) mechanism. We thus provide evidence that RNAi triggered by antisense transcripts may modulate human L1 retrotransposition efficiently and economically. L1-specific siRNAs are among the first natural siRNAs reported in mammalian systems. This work may contribute to understanding the regulatory role of abundant antisense transcripts in eukaryotic genomes.
- Subjects
HUMAN genome; GENE expression; GENE silencing; HUMAN cell culture; CHROMATIN; EUKARYOTIC cells
- Publication
Nature Structural & Molecular Biology, 2006, Vol 13, Issue 9, p763
- ISSN
1545-9993
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1038/nsmb1141