Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

The yeast transposon Ty1 generates duplications of target DNA on insertion

Nature volume 286, pages 414–418 (1980)Cite this article

Abstract

Genetic elements which can transpose into different chromosomal sites causing modulation of gene expression have been found in maize1 and several other organisms2. Most intensively characterized are those in enterobacteria: the insertion sequences, short DNA segments with probably no coding information, the transposable drug-resistance genes and the phage Mu (refs 2–4). The molecular details of transpositions in bacteria are under investigation; important results are the duplication of short target sequences at the integration site.5–15. and the identification of a transposase protein16,17 . The yeast transposable element Ty1 is present in about 35 copies per genome; it is 5,600 nucleotide pairs long with terminal direct repeats of 300 nucleotide pairs and is able to integrate into new chromosomal sites18. The resemblance of this yeast element to mobile elements in Drosophila melanogaster19,20 is striking. The best characterized element, called copia, is present in about 30 copies in the Drosophila genome19,21 and can integrate into many sites22, in some cases as part of a large transposable segment23. Another remarkable structural resemblance exists with the proviral DNA of retrovirus, which can insert into different chromosomal sites, as found in avian sarcoma virus transformed rat cells24 . We focus here on the DNA sequence at the termini of element Ty1 (ref. 18). Our sequence data show that transposition in yeast and bacteria have several features in common, such as integration into different sites without any apparent sequence specificity and duplication of five nucleotide pairs of target DNA at the integration site. In addition, we find that the terminal repeats in two Ty1 elements consist of identical 338 nucleotide pairs.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. McClintock, B. Cold Spring Harb. Symp. quant. Biol. 21, 197–216 (1956).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Bukhari, A. I., Shapiro, J. A. & Adhya, S. L. (eds) DNA Insertion Elements, Plasmids and Episomes (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York, 1977).

  3. Kleckner, N. Cell 11, 11–23 (1977).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Starlinger, P. Plasmid (in the press).

  5. Calos, M., Johnsrud, L. & Miller, J. H. Cell 13, 411–418 (1978).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Grindley, N. D. F. Cell 13, 419–426 (1978).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Kühn, S., Fritz, H. J. & Starlinger, P. Molec. gen. Genet. 167, 235–241 (1979).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Johnsrud, L., Calos, M. P. & Miller, J. H. Cell 15, 1209–1219 (1978).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Oka, A., Nomura, N., Sugimoto, K., Sugisaki, H. & Takanami, M. Nature 276, 845–847 (1978).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Kleckner, N. Cell 16, 711–720 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Rosenberg, M., Court, D., Shimatake, H., Brady, C. & Wulff, D. L. Nature 272, 414 (1978).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Ghosal, D., Sommer, H. & Saedler, H. Nucleic Acids Res. 6, 1111–1122 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Ohtsubo, H., Ohmori, H. & Ohtsubo, E. Cold Spring Harb. Symp. quant. Biol. 43, 1269–1278 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Kamp, D. & Kahmann, R. Nature 280, 247–250 (1979).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  15. Habermann, P., Klaer, R., Kühn, S. & Starlinger, P. Molec. gen. Genet. 175, 369–373 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Gill, R. E., Heffron, F. & Falkow, S. Nature 282, 797–801 (1979).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Chou, J., Lemaux, P. G., Casadaban, M. J. & Cohen, S. N. Nature 282, 801–806 (1979).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Cameron, J. R., Loh, E. Y. & Davis, R. W. Cell 16, 739–751 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Finnegan, D. J., Rubin, G. M., Young, M. W. & Hogness, D. S. Cold Spring Harb. Symp. quant. Biol. 42, 1053–1063 (1978).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Tchurikov, N. A., Ilyin, Yu. V., Ananiev, E. V. & Georgiev, G. P. Nucleic Acids Res. 5, 2169–2187 (1978).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Strobel, E., Dunsmuir, P. & Rubin, G. M. Cell 17, 429–439 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Potter, S. S., Brorein, W. J. Jr, Dunsmuir, P. & Rubin, G. M. Cell 17, 415–427 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Gehring, W. & Paro, R. Cell (in the press).

  24. Hughes, S. H. et al. Cell 15, 1397–1410. (1978).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Shapiro, J. A. Proc. natn. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 76, 1933–1397 (1979).

  26. Arthur, A. & Sherratt, D. Molec. gen. Genet. 175, 267–274 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Maxam, A. & Gilbert, W. Proc. natn Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 74, 560–564 (1977).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Gannon, F. et al. Nature 278, 428–433 (1979).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Meyer, J., Iida, S. & Arber, W. Molec. gen. Genet. (in the press).

  30. MacHattie, L. A. & Jackowski, J. B. in DNA Insertion Elements, Plasmids and Episomes (eds Bukhari, A. I., Shapiro, J. A. & Adhya, S. L.) 219–228 (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York, 1977).

    Google Scholar 

  31. Iida, S. & Arber, W. Molec. gen. Genet. 177, 261–270 (1980).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Tu, C. P. D. & Cohen, S. N. Cell 19, 151–160 (1980).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Taylor, J. M. Curr. Top. Microbiol. Immun. 87, 23–41 (1979).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Microbiology Department, Biozentrum, University of Basel, Klingelbergstrasse 70, CH-4056, Basel, Switzerland

    Jürg Gafner & Peter Philippsen

Authors
  1. Jürg Gafner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Peter Philippsen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gafner, J., Philippsen, P. The yeast transposon Ty1 generates duplications of target DNA on insertion. Nature 286, 414–418 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1038/286414a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/286414a0

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing