retroelement meaning
[Medicine]
Elements that are transcribed into RNA,reverse-transcribed into DNA and then inserted into a new site in the genome. Long terminal repeats (LTRs) similar to those from retroviruses are contained in retrotransposons and retrovirus-like elements. Retroposons,such as LONG INTERSPERSED NUCLEOTIDE ELEMENTS and SHORT INTERSPERSED NUCLEOTIDE ELEMENTS do not contain LTRs.
Elements that are transcribed into RNA,reverse-transcribed into DNA and then inserted into a new site in the genome. Long terminal repeats (LTRs) similar to those from retroviruses are contained in retrotransposons and retrovirus-like elements. Retroposons,such as LONG INTERSPERSED NUCLEOTIDE ELEMENTS and SHORT INTERSPERSED NUCLEOTIDE ELEMENTS do not contain LTRs.
Examples
- An example of this is the gypsy, a retroelement found in the " Drosophila melanogaster " genome.
- A novel virus, ANMV-1, believed to infect anaerobic archaea in a deep-sea methane seep, is shown to have the first diversity-generating retroelement found in archaea or their viruses, which has the potential to generate rapid genetic diversity in the virus . " Nat Comm"