Plant Transposable Elements: Impact on Genome Structure and Function 2012th Edition

From the reviews:

“For the 16 chapters of this volume, the editors have brought together contributors from all corners of the diverse field of transposon biology. … This volume is pitched to both transposon biologists and to nonspecialists. … the book provides a good introduction to this very broad research field and will be a key reference for specialists.” (J. Arvid Ågren, The Quarterly Review of Biology, Vol. 88 (3), September, 2013)

Transposable elements are DNA sequences with the capacity to move within a genome. Although their presence and impact has long been known, the recent genome-wide analysis of many eukaryotic genomes has uncovered their major role in genome dynamics and function. The present book explains how to recognize and study transposable elements, e.g. by using state-of-the-art strategies based on new-generation sequencing. Moreover, the impact of transposable elements on plant genome structure and function is reviewed in detail and illustrated in examples and case studies.

The book is intended both for readers familiar with the field and for newcomers. With large-scale sequencing becoming increasingly available, more and more people will come across transposable element sequences in their data, and this volume will hopefully help to convince them that transposable elements are not just “junk” DNA, and may actually be the most interesting and fun part of their data!