Spip and Squiq, two novel rice non-autonomous LTR retro-element families related to RIRE3 and RIRE8

Spip and Squiq are the fourth and fifth LARD families to be described in the rice genome, suggesting that this type of sequences is not rare. Moreover, these two families appear to be as numerous as their autonomous counterparts, suggesting that they have played an equivalent role in the recent history of rice.