mRNA retroposition in human cells: Processed pseudogene formation

Joël Maestre, Thierry Tchénio, Olivier Dhellin, Thierry Heidmann

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    121 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Using a sensitive assay for detection of reverse transcription events, we demonstrate that human HeLa cells can 'retropose', i.e. reverse transcribe and integrate, the mRNA of a naive reporter gene, at a low but detectable frequency. Furthermore, we show that the retroposed copies have all the hallmarks of the processed pseudogenes naturally found in the mammalian genome: they lack intron and 5' promoter sequence, they have acquired a 3' poly(A) tail, and they are flanked by short repeats (<15 bp) of target DNA sequence. These results demonstrate that human cells possess an endogenous reverse transcription activity, which is not restricted to transcripts of transposable elements, and which is likely to be involved in the formation, still ongoing, of a large fraction of the eukaryotic genome.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)6333-6338
    Number of pages6
    JournalEMBO Journal
    Volume14
    Issue number24
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 1995

    Keywords

    • Pseudogene
    • Retroposition
    • Retropseudogene
    • Reverse transcription

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