A new ERC project at IPS2!

Interactions and evolutionary dynamics of transposable elements and host proteins

Leandro Quadrana has just been awarded an ERC Consolidator grant: “HosTEome.”

This project focuses on transposable elements (TEs) in the plant genome, sometimes called “jumping genes,” which are DNA sequences capable of changing position and multiplying within the genome. Long considered as "junk DNA", TEs are now recognized as essential drivers of evolution, occupying a significant portion of the genomes of most organisms. Until now, research has primarily focused on the mechanisms associated with their mobilization, their impact in terms of genetic mutations, and the epigenetic mechanisms that keep them under control. However, TEs are not simply repetitive sequences: they encode specialized proteins that catalyze their movement and interact with the cellular environment. The nature of these interactions and their impact on the ability of TEs to propagate remain however largely unknown. The "HosTEome" project aims to better understand how the proteins encoded by TEs and those of their host genomes influence each other, and how these relationships contribute, in the long term, to shaping the structure and evolution of genomes. To this end, the project will use approaches ranging from proteomics, interactomics, epigenomics, bioinformatics, and artificial intelligence-guided genomics, to explore these interactions and their large-scale diversification during eukaryotic evolution.

12/12/2025