Cellular gene expression machinery has coevolved with molecular parasites, such as viruses and transposons, which rely on host cells for their expression and reproduction. We previously reported that a wild-derived allele of mouse Nxf1 (Tap), a key component of the host mRNA nuclear export machinery, suppresses two endogenous retrovirus-induced mutations and shows suggestive evidence of positive selection. Here we show that Nxf1CAST suppresses a specific and frequent class of intracisternal A particle (IAP)-induced mutations, including Ap3d1mh2J, a model for Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome, and Atcayhes, an orthologous gene model for Cayman ataxia, among others. The molecular phenotype of suppression includes ~two-fold increase in the level of correctly-spliced mRNA and a decrease in mutant-specific, alternatively-processed RNA accumulating from the inserted allele. Insertional mutations involving ETn and LINE elements are not suppressed, demonstrating a high degree of specificity to this suppression mechanism. These results implicate Nxf1 in some instances of pre-mRNA processing, demonstrate the useful range of Nxf1CAST alleles for manipulating existing mouse models of disease, and specifically imply a low functional threshold for therapeutic benefit in Cayman ataxia.
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