Polinton

Polintons (also called Mavericks) are large DNA transposons which contain genes with homology to viral proteins and which are often found in eukaryotic genomes.

[6] Polintons encode up to 10 proteins, the key elements being the protein-primed type B DNA polymerase and the retroviral-like integrase from which they derive their name.

The presence of putative capsid proteins has prompted suggestions that polintons may be able to form virions under some conditions; however, this has not been demonstrated experimentally.

[2][12] An overlapping class of transposable element was described in 2006 under the name polintons, derived from the key proteins polymerase and integrase, by Vladimir Kapitonov and Jerzy Jurka.

[3][6] Because of their viral capsid-like proteins and self-replication abilities, it has been suggested that polintons are capable of forming virions and would properly be termed polintoviruses.

The genetic network linking various types of Bamfordvirae viruses and selfish genetic elements, represented by labeled circles. Links between circles are color-coded by the gene whose sequence homology establishes the link. [ 8 ]