Figure 1

VNTR composite retrotransposon families in hominoid primates. All families share the 5’ CT repeat/Alu-like region and the central VNTR, but are characterized by variant 3’ ends. In SVA the 3’ part is composed of a sequence derived from the human endogenous retrovirus HERV-K (SINE-R). The 3’ part of LAVA elements (LA) is constituted of fragments of an AluSz (A) and of an L1ME (L) element combined with unique (U) sequences preceding the Alu moiety and separating it from the L1ME fragment. It is also referred to as U1-AluSz-U2-L1ME [2]. PVA elements are characterized by fusion of PTGR2 exon 4 and part of intron 4 to the VNTR. The FVA 3’ end contains part of a FRAM (Free Right Alu Monomer) element surrounded by non-repetitive sequence. Chevron arrows indicate target site duplications.