Thomas J. Meyer, Jimi L. Rosenkrantz, Lucia Carbone, Shawn L. Chavez
Abstract
Mammalian genomes are scattered with thousands of copies of endogenous retroviruses (ERVs), mobile genetic elements that are relics of ancient retroviral infections. After inserting copies into the germ line of a host, most ERVs accumulate mutations that prevent the normal assembly of infectious viral particles, becoming trapped in host genomes and unable to leave to infect other cells. While most copies of ERVs are inactive, some are transcribed and encode the proteins needed to generate new insertions at novel loci. In some cases, old copies are removed via recombination and other mechanisms. This creates a shifting landscape of ERV copies within host genomes. New insertions can disrupt normal expression of nearby genes via directly inserting into key regulatory elements or by containing regulatory motifs within their sequences. Further, the transcriptional silencing of ERVs via epigenetic modification may result in changes to the epigenetic regulation of adjacent genes. In these ways, ERVs can be potent sources of regulatory disruption as well as genetic innovation. Here, we provide a brief review of the association between ERVs and gene expression, especially as observed in pre-implantation development and placentation. Moreover, we will describe how disruption of the regulated mechanisms of ERVs may impact somatic tissues, mostly in the context of human disease, including cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, and schizophrenia. Lastly, we discuss the recent discovery that some ERVs may have been pressed into the service of their host genomes to aid in the innate immune response to exogenous viral infections.
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 46. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 20 September 2023.
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#978,721
of 26,743,793 outputs
Outputs from Frontiers in Chemistry
#40
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#18,887
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Outputs of similar age from Frontiers in Chemistry
#3
of 26 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 26,743,793 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 96th percentile: it's in the top 5% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 6,951 research outputs from this source. They receive a mean Attention Score of 2.6. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its peers.
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We're also able to compare this research output to 26 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done well, scoring higher than 88% of its contemporaries.
