Abstract
Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) make up a substantial part of the human genome. HERVs and solitary long terminal repeats (solo LTRs) are usually flanked by 46 nt short direct repeats through the well-known mechanism of their integration. A number of solo LTRs flanked by unusually long direct repeats were detected in the human genome. These unusual structures might be a product of an alternative virus insertion mechanism.
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