Analysis of interorganellar transposition of DNA

DNA在细胞器之间的运动是真核生物进化的主要动力。在酵母中，大约75%的核基因可能来自原线粒体。尽管DNA转移本身在包括哺乳动物在内的所有高等细胞中继续进行，但在大多数物种中，基因的功能转移已经停止。它在植物中以很高的速度继续，使它们在基因组的进化研究中具有独特的潜力。我们通过实验确定DNA经常从质体（叶绿体）移动到细胞核。我们现在的目标是测量DNA从质体转位到线粒体的频率。如果转位足够频繁，该方法可用于转化线粒体基因组。

The movement of DNA between organelles is a major driving force in the eukaryotic evolution. In yeast about 75% of all nuclear genes may derive from protomitochondria. Though DNA transfer per se continues in all higher cells, including mammals, in most species the functional transfer of genes has stopped. It continues at a high rate in plants, giving them unique potential in evolutionary studies of the genome. We established experimentally that DNA moves frequently from the plastid (chloroplast) to the nucleus. We now aim to measure the frequency of DNA transposition from the plastid to the mitochondrion. If transposition is sufficiently frequent, the approach can be used to transformation the mitochondrial genome.