The paper analyzes genome composition across vertebrates and invertebrates to show that CpG depletion defines a compositional axis, with AG/CT as its strongest marker, not the direct mutational product TpG/CpA.

bioRxiv · Sep 5, 2026 · PreprintGenomics

Relationship between Transposable Elements and behavioral traits: insights from six genetic isolates from North-Eastern Italy

Giorgia Modenini, Giacomo Mercuri, Paolo Abondio, Giuseppe Giovanni Nardone, Aurora Santin, Paola Tesolin, Beatrice Spedicati, Alessandro Pecori, Giulia Pianigiani, Maria Pina Concas, Giorgia Girotto, Paolo Gasparini, Alessio Boattini, Massimo Mezzavilla

The paper investigates the association between polymorphic transposable elements (TEs) and behavioral traits and BMI in six Italian genetic isolates, finding significant links to health-related phenotypes.

medRxiv · May 7, 2025 · PreprintGenetic & Genomic Medicine

Inter-individual genomic heterogeneity within European population isolates

Paolo Anagnostou, Valentina Dominici, Cinzia Battaggia, Alessandro Lisi, Stefania Sarno, Alessio Boattini, Carla Maria Calò, Paolo Francalacci, Giuseppe Vona, Sergio Tofanelli, Miguel G. Vilar, Vincenza Colonna, Luca Pagani, Giovanni Destro‐Bisol

The paper analyzes genomic heterogeneity within European population isolates and finds that inter-individual variation is comparable to non-isolated populations, with some isolates showing higher levels due to recent introgression.

PLoS ONE · Oct 9, 2019Peer-reviewedGenomics

Impact of non-LTR retrotransposons in the differentiation and evolution of Anatomically Modern Humans

Etienne Guichard, Valentina Peona, Guidantonio Malagoli Tagliazucchi, Lucia Abitante, Evelyn Jagoda, Margherita Musella, Marco Ricci, Alejandro Rubio-Roldán, Stefania Sarno, Donata Luiselli, Davide Pettener, Cristian Taccioli, Luca Pagani, Jose Luis Garcia-Perez, Alessio Boattini

This study identifies human-specific non-LTR retrotransposon insertions and shows their association with gene expression changes and phenotypic evolution in humans.

Mobile DNA · Aug 15, 2018Peer-reviewedGenomics

Transposable elements activity reveals punctuated patterns of speciation in Mammals

Marco Ricci, Valentina Peona, Etienne Guichard, Cristian Taccioli, Alessio Boattini

The paper analyzes transposable element activity in mammals to test the Cold Genome hypothesis, finding correlations between speciation rates and genome 'hot'/'cold' classifications.

bioRxiv · Mar 30, 2017 · PreprintEvolutionary Biology