Infectrons and coevolution

Parasites or Cohabitants: Cruel Omnipresent Usurpers or Creative “Éminences Grises”?

“…The navigation of mobile elements in the pangenome of the living beings is made by infectrons. Tosta coined this term to encompass the broad array of exogenous DNAs that invade a genome and interfere with its structure or organization, and, therefore with its function [13]. In fact, infectious agents are everywhere and they dwell the uppermost of our individuality: our genome.…”

“…In fact, infectious agents are everywhere and they dwell the uppermost of our individuality: our genome. Indeed, it has been recognized that about 40% of mammalian genome is composed of retrotransposons derived from retroviruses [13][14][15]. Symbiology plays a central role in ecology and on the overall understanding of Biology.…”

“…It is noteworthy that the kinetoplast is a portion of the single trypanosomatid mitochondrion, an organelle with presumed endosymbiotic origin. Different mechanisms have been hypothesized for the transfer of foreign DNA to eukaryotes, including phagocytosis, infection, and symbiosis [13].…”

“…Interestingly a protein of a viral origin may mediate sperm-egg fusion in mammals [208,209], and endogenous retroviruses play a pivotal role in both placental morphogenesis and suppressing the maternal immune response against the embryo [210][211][212]. These retrotransposon-like sequences which may account for over 40% of the human genome and had been termed "infectrons" [7,13] as mentioned above.…”