Project description:Endogenous retrovirus MERVL is specifically expressed in a minority of embryonic stem cells and 2-cell embryos. To determine the function of MERVL transcripts, we knocked down MuERVL and analyzed the effect on the expression of MERVL and its targeting genes. It turns out the downregulation of MuERVL would lead to downregulation of MERVL nearby genes. This study extends our understandings of the machanism by which MERVL regulates its neatby genes.