Transposable elements and the evolution of eukaryotic genomes

In addition to discovering TEs, McClintock also uncovered disparate ways that TEs can alter genetic information. At one end of the spectrum she found that TEs could restructure genomes through element-mediated chromosomal rearrangements. At the other end she and others found they could generate new alleles by inserting into and around genes and altering their expression. Thus, the presence and extraordinary abundance of TEs in eukaryotic genomes promote a myriad of genome-altering events.