retrotransposon

ret·ro·trans·po·son

noun \-ˌtran(t)s-ˈpō-ˌzän\

Definition of RETROTRANSPOSON

: a transposable element that undergoes transposition from one place to another in the genome of a cell by forming an intermediate RNA transcript from which a copy of the DNA of the transposable element is made using a reverse transcriptase and inserted into the genome at a new location—called also retroposon