ID: 613 / 281

Category: Symposia

Track: Pending

Proposed Symposium Title: TRANSPOSON TAKEOVER: TRANSPOSABLE ELMENTS IN PLANT GENOME EVOLUTION, ADAPTATION AND REGULATION

Abstract: The "Transposon Takeover" symposium focuses on the plant genome component that many don’t understand, yet every plant genomicist has to deal with: Transposable elements (TEs). They never come alone, instead they are abundant. Indeed, they may even form whole populations within a single plant genome. Are TEs genomic conquerors and are plant genomes their conquests? And how can we make sense of plant genomes that are taken over by TEs? This symposium follows the increase in techniques and data in plant genomics, including chromosomal mapping techniques, long read sequencing, methylation analysis, and genome assemblies (including haplotypes and polyploids) that even span densely-packed repetitive regions. We aim to address how we can use new techniques and data to learn about the TE impact on (I) plant genome evolution: With their ability to mobilize and to integrate into new genomic locations, we understand TEs as motors of genome evolution. They shuffle genetic material around, and create new genome space for evolutionary novelty and adaptability. (II) plant genome adaptation: Some TEs may harbor sensors for changing environmental conditions, causing activation or silencing of surrounding genetic regions or the TE itself. Hence, TEs may have played a substantial role in equipping plants to environmental challenges and in exploiting new ecological niches. (III) plant genome regulation: Due to TEs carrying promoters, enhancers or other domains, TEs may actively participate in gene regulation. Similarly TEs may serve as target for the epigenetic control of the immediate genomic environment. Understanding these regulatory roles is crucial for comprehending the expression networks that govern plant development, response to stress, and phenotypic plasticity. If you have encountered TEs in the plant genome of your choice, the "Transposon Takeover" symposium is for you. We will unite researchers across botanical disciplines to discuss roles and implications of TEs in plant genomes, as well as the current methods and standards for their identification.

Speaker 1: Amandine Cornille Génétique Quantitative et Évolution - Le Moulon, Université Paris-Saclay, INRAE, CNRS, AgroParisTech, IDEEV, Gif-sur-Yvette, France; amandine.cornille@gmail.com

Speaker 2: Josep Casacuberta Centre de Recerca en Agrigenòmica (CRAG), Barcelona, Spain; josep.casacuberta@cragenomica.es

Speaker 3: Ian Henderson Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; irh25@cam.ac.uk

Topics (Up to three): Comparative genomics and transcriptomics

Topic 2: Population genetics

Topic 3: Bioinformatics

Justification: As transposable elements (TEs) are abundant genome components, every plant genomicist has likely encountered them before. Yet, in the past, TEs have been largely removed from datasets. This is slowly changing. As we are only discovering the impact of TEs on plant genome evolution, adaptation and regulation, there is now much more interest than has been only a decade before. Nevertheless, due to their repetitivity, TE analysis is not easy and we need a community that actively discusses the standards of TE identification, classification and annotation. Similarly, we want to share recent and exciting new discoveries that showcase how these often underestimated genome components reroute evolutionary, adaptive or regulatory trajectories of plant genomes. This symposium aims to assemble researchers across botanical disciplines who will discuss TEs in a plant genomics context. We aim to invite experts in the plant TE field, representing different career stages, nationalities and genders.