Scientists have uncovered a fascinating feature of the human brain gene BC200 -it appears to have retained the ability to move through the genome. BC200 evolved millions of years ago from a transposon, a mobile piece of DNA that can change its location within genetic material. Unlike most genes derived from transposons, BC200 seems to have preserved this unusual mobility while taking on an important role in brain cells. Even more surprisingly, researchers discovered BC200 sequences inside a human poxvirus, raising the possibility that the gene may have moved from infected human skin cells into the virus. The discovery offers new insights into how genes evolve and move between genomes.
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