Coevolution of Telomeric Repeats and Telomeric Repeat–Specific Non-LTR Retrotransposons in Insects

In the telomeres of the silkworm Bombyx mori, telomeric repeat–specific non-long terminal repeat (LTR) retrotransposon SARTBm1 is accumulated in the TTAGG telomeric repeats. Here, we identify novel telomeric repeat–specific non-LTR retrotransposons, SARTTc family, from the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum in the unconventional TCAGG telomeric repeats. To compare the sequence specificity of SARTBm1 and SARTTc1, we developed a comparable ex vivo retrotransposition assay. Both SARTBm1 and SARTTc1 preferred the telomeric sequence of their hosts, suggesting that the target specificity of these retrotransposons coevolved with their host’s telomeric repeats. Swapping experiment indicated that the endonuclease domain is involved in recognizing the target sequence. Moreover, SARTBm1 proteins could retrotranspose 3#untranslated region (UTR) sequence of SARTTc1 as well as their own 3#UTR, whereas SARTTc1 proteins could only retrotranspose their own 3#UTRs. These results provide insights to the mechanism and divergence of sequence specificity and 3#UTR recognition in non-LTR retrotransposons.