水稻转座子研究进展

Research Advances on Transposable Elements in Rice

转座子是植物基因组的重要组成部分,对于研究植物基因组进化等具有重要意义。随着水稻全基因组测序计划的开展和完成,水稻转座子研究取得了极大进展,目前已经在水稻基因组中发现了几乎所有类型的转座子,约占水稻基因组的35%。在正常情况下,大多数水稻转座子不具有转座活性,但是在特定的条件下(如组织培养或辐射等),水稻基因组中沉默的转座子可以被激活,从而可能导致插入突变并影响基因的表达。在水稻中已鉴定出6个有活性的转座子,其中Tos17已被应用到水稻功能基因组研究中。转座子序列的新的分子标记转座子展示(transposon display,TD)现已被开发,并在水稻遗传作图和遗传分化研究中得到应用。

Transposable elements are important components of plant genome and play critical roles in genome evolution. With the availability of complete rice genomic sequences, great progress has been made in identifying and characterizing rice transposons. To date, almost all types of transposons have been identified in rice, and they make up about 35% of the genome. Most transposons are silent during normal development, but they can be activated by factors such as tissue culture or radiation. The activation of transposons may induce the loss of gene function or affect rice gene expression. Six active transposons have been discovered, with Tos17the first active transposon widely used in rice functional genomics studies. Transposons can also serve as a new type of molecular marker with use of the technique transposon display （TD）, a useful tool in rice genetic mapping and the studies of genetic diversity.