Progressive Exaptation of Endogenous Retroviruses in Placental Evolution in Cattle

Viviparity is made possible by the placenta, a structure acquired relatively recently in the evolutionary history of eutherian mammals. Compared to oviparity, it increases the survival rate of the fetus, owing to the eutherian placenta. Questions such as “How was the placenta acquired?” and “Why is there diversity in placental morphology among mammalian species?” remain largely unsolved. Our present understanding of the molecules regulating placental development remains unclear, owing in no small part to the persistent obscurity surrounding the molecular mechanisms underlying placental acquisition. Many genes that characterize eutherian placental morphology likely evolved to be expressed at the fetal-maternal interface concurrently with those during embryogenesis. Therefore, identifying these genes, how they were acquired, and how they came to be expressed specifically at the fetal-maternal interface will shed light on some crucial molecular mechanisms underlying placental evolution. Exhaustive studies support the hypothesis that endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) could be evolutional driving forces for trophoblast cell fusion and placental structure in mammalian placentas including those of the bovine species. This review focuses on bovine ERVs (BERVs) and their expression and function in the placenta.