Most of the avian genome appears available for retroviral DNA integration.
Although retroviral integration requires specific viral DNA sequences, factors which govern the choice of a chromosomal target site within an infected cell are less clear. For example, certain chromosomal regions may be inaccessible to the viral integration machinery, while others may favor integration. A recent paper by Withers-Ward et al.(1) addresses this issue using a polymerase chain reaction-based assay capable of identifying single integration events within a large population of infected cells. Their results show that integration can occur into many different chromosomal regions, and that local DNA structure can influence the site of integration within a given region.
Engelman
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Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Bethesda, MD 20892-0560.
D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds / Q000235:genetics* / Q000821:virology*; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000821:virology; D016678:Genome; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011533:Proviruses; D012190:Retroviridae / Q000235:genetics*; D014422:Turkeys / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics / Q000821:virology; D016662:Virus Integration
D004279:DNA, Viral