-
Critical Reviews in Oncogenesis 2015Gene therapy for cancer is a still evolving approach that resulted from a long history of studies into genetic modification of organisms. The fascination with... (Review)
Review
Gene therapy for cancer is a still evolving approach that resulted from a long history of studies into genetic modification of organisms. The fascination with manipulating gene products has spanned hundreds if not thousands of years, beginning with observations of the hereditary nature of traits in plants and culminating to date in the alteration of genetic makeup in humans via modern technology. From early discoveries noting the potential for natural mobility of genetic material to the culmination of clinical trials in a variety of disease, gene transfer has had an eventful and sometimes tumultuous course. Within the present review is a brief history of the biology of gene transfer, how it came to be applied to genetic diseases, and its early applications to cancer therapies. Some of the different types of methods used to modify cells, the theories behind the approaches, and some of the limitations encountered along the way are reviewed.
Topics: Animals; Female; Genetic Therapy; Humans; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Male; Neoplasms
PubMed: 27279244
DOI: 10.1615/CritRevOncog.v20.i5-6.180 -
Science (New York, N.Y.) May 2019
Topics: Animals; Fishes; Fresh Water; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Seafood
PubMed: 31147508
DOI: 10.1126/science.aax7936 -
Plasmid Sep 2019
Topics: Humans; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Plasmids
PubMed: 31472205
DOI: 10.1016/j.plasmid.2019.102437 -
Plasmid Sep 2018
Topics: Drug Resistance, Bacterial; Humans; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Plasmids
PubMed: 30502775
DOI: 10.1016/j.plasmid.2018.11.003 -
Nature Reviews. Microbiology Sep 2005Horizontal genomics is a new field in prokaryotic biology that is focused on the analysis of DNA sequences in prokaryotic chromosomes that seem to have originated from... (Review)
Review
Horizontal genomics is a new field in prokaryotic biology that is focused on the analysis of DNA sequences in prokaryotic chromosomes that seem to have originated from other prokaryotes or eukaryotes. However, it is equally important to understand the agents that effect DNA movement: plasmids, bacteriophages and transposons. Although these agents occur in all prokaryotes, comprehensive genomics of the prokaryotic mobile gene pool or 'mobilome' lags behind other genomics initiatives owing to challenges that are distinct from cellular chromosomal analysis. Recent work shows promise of improved mobile genetic element (MGE) genomics and consequent opportunities to take advantage - and avoid the dangers - of these 'natural genetic engineers'. This review describes MGEs, their properties that are important in horizontal gene transfer, and current opportunities to advance MGE genomics.
Topics: Conjugation, Genetic; DNA, Bacterial; Evolution, Molecular; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Models, Genetic; Recombination, Genetic
PubMed: 16138100
DOI: 10.1038/nrmicro1235 -
Trends in Genetics : TIG Sep 2016Unrecognizable genes are an unsettling problem in genomics. Here, we survey the various types of cryptic genes and the corresponding deciphering strategies employed by... (Review)
Review
Unrecognizable genes are an unsettling problem in genomics. Here, we survey the various types of cryptic genes and the corresponding deciphering strategies employed by cells. Encryption that renders genes substantially different from homologs in other species includes sequence substitution, insertion, deletion, fragmentation plus scrambling, and invasion by mobile genetic elements. Cells decode cryptic genes at the DNA, RNA or protein level. We will focus on a recently discovered case of unparalleled encryption involving massive gene fragmentation and nucleotide deletions and substitutions, occurring in the mitochondrial genome of a poorly understood protist group, the diplonemids. This example illustrates that comprehensive gene detection requires not only auxiliary sequence information - transcriptome and proteome data - but also knowledge about a cell's deciphering arsenal.
Topics: DNA, Mitochondrial; Euglenozoa; Genome, Mitochondrial; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Mitochondria; RNA Editing; Transcription, Genetic
PubMed: 27460648
DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2016.06.005 -
BioEssays : News and Reviews in... Jan 2006Transposons are well-known architects of genetic change but their role in insecticide resistance has, until recently, only been speculated upon. Transposon insertion, or...
Transposons are well-known architects of genetic change but their role in insecticide resistance has, until recently, only been speculated upon. Transposon insertion, or transposon-mediated transposition, could alter either metabolic enzymes capable of degrading pesticides or could change the functionality of insecticide targets. The recent work of Aminetzach and coworkers suggests an exciting alternative, that transposon insertion can cause resistance by altering gene product function. This hypothesis is discussed in the light of other examples in which transposons have been implicated in insecticide resistance.
Topics: Animals; DNA Transposable Elements; Gene Expression Regulation; Insecticide Resistance; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences
PubMed: 16369944
DOI: 10.1002/bies.20354 -
Current Opinion in Microbiology Jun 2023Horizontal gene transfer is central to bacterial adaptation and is facilitated by mobile genetic elements (MGEs). Increasingly, MGEs are being studied as agents with... (Review)
Review
Horizontal gene transfer is central to bacterial adaptation and is facilitated by mobile genetic elements (MGEs). Increasingly, MGEs are being studied as agents with their own interests and adaptations, and the interactions MGEs have with one another are recognised as having a powerful effect on the flow of traits between microbes. Collaborations and conflicts between MGEs are nuanced and can both promote and inhibit the acquisition of new genetic material, shaping the maintenance of newly acquired genes and the dissemination of important adaptive traits through microbiomes. We review recent studies that shed light on this dynamic and oftentimes interlaced interplay, highlighting the importance of genome defence systems in mediating MGE-MGE conflicts, and outlining the consequences for evolutionary change, that resonate from the molecular to microbiome and ecosystem levels.
Topics: Gene Transfer, Horizontal; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Bacteria; Biological Evolution; Microbiota
PubMed: 36863168
DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2023.102282 -
Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton,... 2018Chromothripsis is a mutational event driven by tens to hundreds of double-stranded DNA breaks which occur in a single event between a limited number of chromosomes....
Chromothripsis is a mutational event driven by tens to hundreds of double-stranded DNA breaks which occur in a single event between a limited number of chromosomes. Following chromosomal shattering, DNA fragments are stitched together in a seemingly random manner resulting in complex genomic rearrangements including sequence shuffling, deletions, and inversions of varying size. This genomic catastrophe has been observed in cancer genomes and the genomes of patients harboring developmental and congenital defects. The mechanisms catalyzing DNA breakage and coordinating the "random" assembly of genomic fragments are actively being investigated. Recently, retrotransposons-a type of "jumping gene"-have been implicated as one means to generate double-stranded DNA breaks during chromothripsis and as sequences which can contribute to the final configuration of the derived chromosomes. In this methods chapter, I discuss how to apply available bioinformatic tools and the hallmarks of retrotransposon mobilization to breakpoint junctions to assess the role for active and inactive retrotransposon sequences in chromothriptic events.
Topics: Alu Elements; Chromothripsis; Genome, Human; Homologous Recombination; Humans; Long Interspersed Nucleotide Elements; Mutagenesis, Insertional; Retroelements; Sequence Deletion; Sequence Inversion
PubMed: 29564824
DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7780-2_11 -
Current Opinion in Microbiology Aug 2017
Topics: Archaea; Bacteria; DNA Transposable Elements; Gene Transfer, Horizontal; Genes, Archaeal; Genes, Bacterial; Genomic Islands; Interspersed Repetitive Sequences; Plasmids
PubMed: 29173837
DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2017.09.018