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Summary LINE-1 (L1) retrotransposons are a source of insertional mutagenesis in tumor cells. However, the clinical significance of L1 mobilization during tumorigenesis remains unclear. Here, we applied retrotransposon capture sequencing (RC-seq) to multiple single-cell clones isolated from five ovarian cancer cell lines and HeLa cells and detected endogenous L1 retrotransposition in vitro . We then applied RC-seq to ovarian tumor and matched blood samples from 19 patients and identified 88 tumor-specific L1 insertions. In one tumor, an intronic de novo L1 insertion supplied a novel cis -enhancer to the putative chemoresistance gene STC1 . Notably, the tumor subclone carrying the STC1 L1 mutation increased in prevalence after chemotherapy, further increasing STC1 expression. We also identified hypomethylated donor L1s responsible for new L1 insertions in tumors and cultivated cancer cells. These congruent in vitro and in vivo results highlight L1 insertional mutagenesis as a common component of ovarian tumorigenesis and cancer genome heterogeneity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epigenetic silencing defends against LINE-1 (L1) retrotransposition in mammalian cells. However, the mechanisms that repress young L1 families and how L1 escapes to cause somatic genome mosaicism in the brain remain unclear. Here we report that a conserved Yin Yang 1 (YY1) transcription factor binding site mediates L1 promoter DNA methylation in pluripotent and differentiated cells. By analyzing 24 hippocampal neurons with three distinct single-cell genomic approaches, we characterized and validated a somatic L1 insertion bearing a 3ʹ transduction. The source (donor) L1 for this insertion was slightly 5ʹ truncated, lacked the YY1 binding site, and was highly mobile when tested in vitro. Locus-specific bisulfite sequencing revealed that the donor L1 and other young L1s with mutated YY1 binding sites were hypomethylated in embryonic stem cells, during neurodifferentiation, and in liver and brain tissue. These results explain how L1 can evade repression and retrotranspose in the human body. • Single-cell genomic analysis of hippocampal neurons reveals a somatic L1 insertion • The donor L1 is slightly 5ʹ truncated and lacks a conserved YY1 binding site • Young L1s with truncated or mutated YY1 binding sites are globally hypomethylated • L1 is able to mobilize in the brain because of locus-specific exceptions to repression Somatic genome mosaicism occurs in human neurons. Sanchez-Luque et al. show that a conserved YY1 binding site mediates methylation of young L1 retrotransposons. L1s lacking an intact YY1 site escape methylation in embryonic stem cells and can retrotranspose during hippocampal neurodevelopment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]