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.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

3D GENOMICS

Jumping retroviruses nudge TADs apart

Far from being junk DNA, the pervasive retrotransposons that populate the genome have a powerful capacity to influence genes and chromatin. A new study demonstrates how the transcription of one such element, HERV-H, can modify the higher-order 3D structure of chromatin during early primate development.

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

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

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

Fig. 1: Functionally co-opted ERVs have diverse activities.

References

  1. Chuong, E. B., Elde, N. C. & Feschotte, C. Nat. Rev. Genet. 18, 71–86 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Mi, S. et al. Nature 403, 785–789 (2000).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Zhang, Y. et al. Nat. Genet. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-019-0479-7 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Dixon, J. R. et al. Nature 485, 376–380 (2012).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Robson, M. I., Ringel, A. R. & Mundlos, S. Mol. Cell 74, 1110–1122 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Fudenberg, G. et al. Cell Rep. 15, 2038–2049 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Bonev, B. et al. Cell 171, 557–572.e24 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Nora, E. P. et al. Cell 169, 930–944.e22 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Busslinger, G. A. et al. Nature 544, 503–507 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Nicolas, D., Phillips, N. E. & Naef, F. Mol. Biosyst. 13, 1280–1290 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Kruse, K. et al. Preprint at bioRxiv https://doi.org/10.1101/523712 (2019).

  12. Despang, A. et al. Nat. Genet. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-019-0466-z (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Mantere, T., Kersten, S. & Hoischen, A. Front. Genet. 10, 426 (2019).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Stefan Mundlos.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Robson, M.I., Mundlos, S. Jumping retroviruses nudge TADs apart. Nat Genet 51, 1304–1305 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-019-0491-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41588-019-0491-y

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing: Translational Research

Sign up for the Nature Briefing: Translational Research newsletter — top stories in biotechnology, drug discovery and pharma.

Get what matters in translational research, free to your inbox weekly. Sign up for Nature Briefing: Translational Research