Abstract
Alu elements are found exclusively in primate species and comprise over 10% of the human genome. To better define the mechanisms responsible for Alu replication, we introduced a human Alu element into mouse cells. We report that Alu retrotransposition can be induced in mouse cells by exposure to the topoisomerase II inhibitor etoposide and is mediated in trans by endogenous mouse long interspersed elements (LINEs).
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Acknowledgements
The Alu clone used in construction of pREP4 was a generous gift of P. Deininger. This work was supported by grants from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the US National Institutes of Health and from the Howard Hughes Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program.
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Hagan, C., Sheffield, R. & Rudin, C. Human Alu element retrotransposition induced by genotoxic stress. Nat Genet 35, 219–220 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/ng1259
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ng1259
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