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Transposable elements (TEs) are powerful engines of genome evolution, as illustrated by their implication in the rewiring of gene regulatory networks and the creation of new cellular functions. Short-term consequences of TE mobilization can also be particularly dramatic given that TE insertions are a unique source of large effect mutations and that transposition can be exquisitely sensitive to the environment. Despite these considerations, there is a lack of knowledge about the role of ongoing transposition to within-species variation. In this talk I will present our efforts to characterize the contribution of TE mobilization to A. thaliana diversity and how we used this knowledge to forecast the consequences of environmentally-induced transposition in response to ongoing climate change.
At the end of my talk I will also present some results that reveal a unique and underappreciated contribution of TE mobilization to tomato diversification. Our observations are particularly relevant for this and others crop species, which are typically characterized by reduced genetic variability despite the extensive phenotypic variation we can observe today among cultivars.