The impact of endogenous retrovirus silencing during mammalian development is poorly understood. A new study shows that their abnormal reactivation in pluripotent cells dismantles key gene regulatory networks by perturbing transcriptional condensates linked to super-enhancer function.
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Acknowledgements
E.J.G. is supported by a Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas Recruitment of First-Time, Tenure-Track Faculty Member Award grant RR210077 and by the Cecil H. and Ida Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences. Apologies to my colleagues whose work cannot be cited owing to space constraints.
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Grow, E.J. Endogenous retroviruses steer transcriptional condensates away from pluripotency. Nat Genet 54, 1068–1069 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-022-01111-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-022-01111-1
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