Transposable Element Landscape in Drosophila Populations Selected for Longevity. 2021

Daniel K Fabian, and Handan Melike Dönertaş, and Matías Fuentealba, and Linda Partridge, and Janet M Thornton
European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, United Kingdom.

Transposable elements (TEs) inflict numerous negative effects on health and fitness as they replicate by integrating into new regions of the host genome. Even though organisms employ powerful mechanisms to demobilize TEs, transposons gradually lose repression during aging. The rising TE activity causes genomic instability and was implicated in age-dependent neurodegenerative diseases, inflammation, and the determination of lifespan. It is therefore conceivable that long-lived individuals have improved TE silencing mechanisms resulting in reduced TE expression relative to their shorter-lived counterparts and fewer genomic insertions. Here, we test this hypothesis by performing the first genome-wide analysis of TE insertions and expression in populations of Drosophila melanogaster selected for longevity through late-life reproduction for 50-170 generations from four independent studies. Contrary to our expectation, TE families were generally more abundant in long-lived populations compared with nonselected controls. Although simulations showed that this was not expected under neutrality, we found little evidence for selection driving TE abundance differences. Additional RNA-seq analysis revealed a tendency for reducing TE expression in selected populations, which might be more important for lifespan than regulating genomic insertions. We further find limited evidence of parallel selection on genes related to TE regulation and transposition. However, telomeric TEs were genomically and transcriptionally more abundant in long-lived flies, suggesting improved telomere maintenance as a promising TE-mediated mechanism for prolonging lifespan. Our results provide a novel viewpoint indicating that reproduction at old age increases the opportunity of TEs to be passed on to the next generation with little impact on longevity.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008136 Longevity The normal length of time of an organism's life. Length of Life,Life Span,Lifespan,Life Spans,Lifespans
D008297 Male Males
D012098 Reproduction The total process by which organisms produce offspring. (Stedman, 25th ed) Human Reproductive Index,Human Reproductive Indexes,Reproductive Period,Human Reproductive Indices,Index, Human Reproductive,Indexes, Human Reproductive,Indices, Human Reproductive,Period, Reproductive,Periods, Reproductive,Reproductive Index, Human,Reproductive Indices, Human,Reproductive Periods
D004331 Drosophila melanogaster A species of fruit fly frequently used in genetics because of the large size of its chromosomes. D. melanogaster,Drosophila melanogasters,melanogaster, Drosophila
D005260 Female Females
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D049750 Genome, Insect The genetic complement of an insect (INSECTS) as represented in its DNA. Insect Genome,Genomes, Insect,Insect Genomes
D019143 Evolution, Molecular The process of cumulative change at the level of DNA; RNA; and PROTEINS, over successive generations. Molecular Evolution,Genetic Evolution,Evolution, Genetic
D020071 Interspersed Repetitive Sequences Copies of transposable elements interspersed throughout the genome, some of which are still active and often referred to as "jumping genes". There are two classes of interspersed repetitive elements. Class I elements (or RETROELEMENTS - such as retrotransposons, retroviruses, LONG INTERSPERSED NUCLEOTIDE ELEMENTS and SHORT INTERSPERSED NUCLEOTIDE ELEMENTS) transpose via reverse transcription of an RNA intermediate. Class II elements (or DNA TRANSPOSABLE ELEMENTS - such as transposons, Tn elements, insertion sequence elements and mobile gene cassettes of bacterial integrons) transpose directly from one site in the DNA to another. Dispersed Repetitive Sequences,Genes, Jumping,Interspersed Repetitive Elements,Jumping Genes,Mobile Genetic Elements,Repetitive Sequences, Dispersed,Repetitive Sequences, Interspersed,Elements, Mobile Genetic,Genetic Elements, Mobile,Dispersed Repetitive Sequence,Element, Interspersed Repetitive,Element, Mobile Genetic,Elements, Interspersed Repetitive,Gene, Jumping,Genetic Element, Mobile,Interspersed Repetitive Element,Interspersed Repetitive Sequence,Jumping Gene,Mobile Genetic Element,Repetitive Element, Interspersed,Repetitive Elements, Interspersed,Repetitive Sequence, Dispersed,Repetitive Sequence, Interspersed,Sequence, Dispersed Repetitive,Sequence, Interspersed Repetitive,Sequences, Dispersed Repetitive,Sequences, Interspersed Repetitive
D040961 Genetic Drift The fluctuation of the ALLELE FREQUENCY from one generation to the next. Evolution, Neutral,Drift, Genetic,Neutral Evolution

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