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Molecular Genetics and Epigenetics of CACTA Elements

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Plant Transposable Elements

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1057))

Abstract

The CACTA transposons, so named for a highly conserved motif at element ends, comprise one of the most abundant superfamilies of Class 2 (cut-and-paste) plant transposons. CACTA transposons characteristically include subterminal sequences of several hundred nucleotides containing closely spaced direct and inverted repeats of a short, conserved sequence of 14-15 bp. The Supressor-mutator (Spm) transposon, identified and subjected to detailed genetic analysis by Barbara McClintock, remains the paradigmatic element of the CACTA family. The Spm transposon encodes two proteins required for transposition, the transposase (TnpD) and a regulatory protein (TnpA) that binds to the subterminal repeats. Spm expression is subject to both genetic and epigenetic regulation. The Spm-encoded TnpA serves as an activator of the epigenetically inactivated, methylated Spm, stimulating both transient and heritable activation of the transposon. TnpA also serves as a negative regulator of the demethylated active element promoter and is required, in addition to the TnpD, for transposition.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Penn State University, University Park, PA, USA

    Nina V. Fedoroff

  2. King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia

    Nina V. Fedoroff

Authors
  1. Nina V. Fedoroff
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Genetics, Development & Cell Biology, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, USA

    Thomas Peterson

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Fedoroff, N.V. (2013). Molecular Genetics and Epigenetics of CACTA Elements. In: Peterson, T. (eds) Plant Transposable Elements. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1057. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-568-2_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-568-2_13

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-62703-567-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-62703-568-2

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