
Full text loading...
Category: Clinical Microbiology
piggyBac Transposon, Page 1 of 2
< Previous page | Next page > /docserver/preview/fulltext/10.1128/9781555819217/9781555819200_Chap39-1.gif /docserver/preview/fulltext/10.1128/9781555819217/9781555819200_Chap39-2.gifAbstract:
The piggyBac transposon superfamily is a relatively recently recognized transposon superfamily. The original piggyBac transposon was isolated from the genome of the cabbage looper moth, Trichoplusia ni in the 1980s. However, the second member of the piggyBac-like element superfamily was not identified until 2000. It was not described as a transposon superfamily in the previous edition of Mobile DNA. In the last decade or so, a number of sequenced genomes have revealed that piggyBac-like elements are actually widespread DNA transposons. Active copies of the transposon have also been identified from another moth species, from frogs, and for the first time, from a mammal. Moreover, because the piggyBac transposon has a broad host spectrum from yeast to mammals, this mobile element has been widely used for a variety of applications in a diverse range of organisms. In this chapter, we will describe the discovery and diversity of the piggyBac transposon, its mechanism of transposition, and its application as a genetic tool. We will also provide two examples of genetic screening that the piggyBac transposon has enabled.
Full text loading...
Structure of the T. ni piggyBac transposon (GenBank accession number J04364.2). TIR, terminal inverted repeat. The minimum TIR sequences are based on ref. ( 61 ).
The chemical steps of T. ni piggyBac transposition. Black and grey arrowheads indicate positions of nicks or sites where 3′ OH groups attack, respectively. Modified from ref. ( 43 ).
Comparison of target site joining and repair in piggyBac (left) and Tc1 (right). Grey arrowheads indicate sites where 3′ OH groups attack. Modified from ref. ( 136 ).
Transposon-mediated cancer gene discovery in mice. (A) Commonly used genetic elements. TIR, terminal inverted repeat; SA, splice acceptor site; pA, polyadenylation signal sequence; SD, splice donor site. (B) In gene activation, a strong constitutive promoter ectopically expresses or overexpresses a trapped gene. The transposon carries two splice acceptor sites in both directions; the trapped genes will be inactivated in spite of the transposon orientation relative to the gene.