Mabuya sp. placental transcriptome

Syncytins are envelope genes from endogenous retroviruses that have been captured during evolution for a function in placentation. They have been found in all placental mammals where they have been searched for, including marsupials. Placental structures are not restricted to mammals but also emerged in some other vertebrates, most frequently in lizards, such as the viviparous Mabuya Scincidae. Here we performed a high throughput RNAsequencing of a Mabuya placenta transcriptome, to screen for the presence of retroviral env genes with a full-length ORF.