Molecular approach to human leukemia: isolation and characterization of the first human retrovirus HTLV-1 and its impact on tumorigenesis in adult T-cell leukemia

Proc Jpn Acad Ser B Phys Biol Sci. 2010;86(2):117-30. doi: 10.2183/pjab.86.117.

Abstract

Molecular biology of mouse and chicken retroviruses had identified oncogenes and provided a revolutionary concept in understanding of cancers. A human retrovirus was established during 1980-1982 in linkage with a unique human leukemia, concurrently in Japan and USA. This review covers our efforts on the discovery of new retrovirus, Human T-cell Leukemia Virus Type 1 (HTLV-1), first introducing to a new class of retroviruses with a unique regulatory factors, Tax and Rex. Then it is followed by analyses of molecular interaction of the vial Tax with cellular machineries involved in the pathogenesis of Adult T-cell Leukemia (ATL). And then a probable mechanism of pathogenesis of ATL is proposed including recent findings on HBZ after our efforts.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / isolation & purification*
  • Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / pathogenicity*
  • Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / physiology
  • Humans
  • Leukemia-Lymphoma, Adult T-Cell / genetics
  • Leukemia-Lymphoma, Adult T-Cell / pathology*
  • Leukemia-Lymphoma, Adult T-Cell / virology*
  • Virus Replication