Genomes on the edge: programmed genome instability in ciliates.

Bracht, John R; Fang, Wenwen; Goldman, Aaron David; Dolzhenko, Egor; Stein, Elizabeth M; Landweber, Laura F · Cell · 2013

basic_science · Level V

Where this comes from

Abstract

Ciliates are an ancient and diverse group of microbial eukaryotes that have emerged as powerful models for RNA-mediated epigenetic inheritance. They possess extensive sets of both tiny and long noncoding RNAs that, together with a suite of proteins that includes transposases, orchestrate a broad cascade of genome rearrangements during somatic nuclear development. This Review emphasizes three important themes: the remarkable role of RNA in shaping genome structure, recent discoveries that unify many deeply diverged ciliate genetic systems, and a surprising evolutionary "sign change" in the role of small RNAs between major species groups.

Medical subject headings