Abstract:
Transposable elements (TEs) are found in virtually every eukaryotic genome and are important for generating de novo genetic variation. However, outside of costly and time-consuming whole-genome sequencing approaches, the set of available methods to study TE polymorphisms in non-model species is very limited. The Transposon Display (TD) is a simple yet effective technique to characterize polymorphisms across samples by identifying amplified fragment length polymorphisms using primers targeting specific TE families. So far, this technique has almost exclusively been used in plants. Here, we present an optimized TD protocol for insect species with small genomes such as ants (ca. 200-600 Mb). We characterized TE polymorphisms between two distinct genetic lineages of the invasive ant Cardiocondyla obscurior, as well as between neighboring populations of the New World lineage. We found active LTR/Ty3 retrotransposons, that contributed to the genetic diversification of populations in this species.
摘要:
转座因子(TE)存在于几乎每个真核生物基因组中,并且对于产生从头遗传变异是重要的。然而,在昂贵且耗时的全基因组测序方法之外,在非模型物种中研究TE多态性的一组可用方法非常有限.转座子展示(TD)是一种简单而有效的技术,可通过使用靶向特定TE家族的引物鉴定扩增的片段长度多态性来表征样品中的多态性。到目前为止,这种技术几乎只用于植物。这里,我们为具有小基因组的昆虫物种(例如蚂蚁)提出了优化的TD协议(约200-600Mb)。我们表征了两种不同的遗传谱系之间的TE多态性,以及新世界血统的邻近人群之间。我们发现了活跃的LTR/Ty3反转录转座子,这导致了该物种种群的遗传多样化。