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Suggested Absence of Horizontal Transfer of Retrotransposons between Humans and Domestic Mammal Species.

ABSTRACT: Transposable element sequences are usually vertically inherited but have also spread across taxa via horizontal transfer. Previous investigations of ancient horizontal transfer of transposons have compared consensus sequences, but this method resists detection of recent single or low copy number transfer events. The relationship between humans and domesticated animals represents an opportunity for potential horizontal transfer due to the consistent shared proximity and exposure to parasitic insects, which have been identified as plausible transfer vectors. The relatively short period of extended human-animal contact (tens of thousands of years or less) makes horizontal transfer of transposons between them unlikely. However, the availability of high-quality reference genomes allows individual element comparisons to detect low copy number events. Using pairwise all-versus-all megablast searches of the complete suite of retrotransposons of thirteen domestic animals against human, we searched a total of 27,949,823 individual TEs. Based on manual comparisons of stringently filtered BLAST search results for evidence of vertical inheritance, no plausible instances of HTT were identified. These results indicate that significant recent HTT between humans and domesticated animals has not occurred despite the close proximity, either due to the short timescale, inhospitable recipient genomes, a failure of vector activity, or other factors.

SUBMITTER: Wanner NM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8391136 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:BackgroundHorizontal transfer (HT) of genetic materials is increasingly being found in both animals and plants and mainly concerns transposable elements (TEs). Many crustaceans have big genome sizes and are thus likely to harbor high TE contents. Their habitat might offer them ample opportunities to exchange genetic materials with organisms that are ecologically close but taxonomically distant to them.ResultsIn this study, we analyzed the transcriptome of Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), an important economic crustacean, to explore traces of HT events. From a collection of newly assembled transcripts, we identified 395 high reliable TE transcripts, most of which were retrotransposon transcripts. One hundred fifty-seven of those transcripts showed highest similarity to sequences from non-arthropod organisms, including ray-finned fishes, mollusks and putative parasites. In total, 16 already known L. vannamei TE families are likely to be involved in horizontal transfer events. Phylogenetic analyses of 10?L. vannamei TE families and their homologues (protein sequences) revealed that L. vannamei TE families were generally more close to sequences from aquatic species. Furthermore, TEs from other aquatic species also tend to group together, although they are often distantly related in taxonomy. Sequences from parasites and microorganisms were also widely present, indicating their possible important roles in HT events. Expression profile analyses of transcripts in two NCBI BioProjects revealed that transcripts involved in HT events are likely to play important roles in antiviral immunity. More specifically, those transcripts might act as inhibitors of antiviral immunity.ConclusionsClose ecological relationship, especially predation, might greatly facilitate HT events among aquatic species. This could be achieved through exchange of parasites and microorganisms, or through direct DNA flow. The occurrence of HT events may be largely incidental, but the effects could be beneficial for recipients.

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Suggested Absence of Horizontal Transfer of Retrotransposons between Humans and Domestic Mammal Species.

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