A novel mouse model of adult T-cell leukemia cell invasion into the spinal cord

Adult T-cell leukemia( ATL) is a mature T-cell malignancy caused by human T-cell leukemia virus type I infection, and 10%-25% of patients show central nervous system( CNS) involvement. CNS involvement significantly reduces survival and there are no effective treatments for CNS involvement. Therefore, an appropriate animal model is required to evaluate the inhibitory effects of novel drugs on the progression of ATL with CNS involvement. Here, we established a mouse model of ATL with CNS involvement using NOD.Cg-Prkdc~ (scid) Il2 rg ^(tm1Wjl)/SzJ mice inoculated with ATL cells intramuscularly in the postauricular region, and these mice showed paraparesis. Of the 10 mice inoculated with ATL cells intramuscularly(I.M.) at 5 weeks of age, 8(80%) showed paraparesis, whereas none of the 10 mice inoculated with ATL cells subcutaneously(S.C.) showed paraparesis. In the I.M. group, PCR detected HTLV-1-specific genes in the thoracic and lumbar vertebrae; however, in the S.C. group, the vertebrae were negative for HTLV-1 genes. Histological analysis revealed a particularly high incidence of tumors, characterized by accumulation of the injected cells, in the thoracic vertebrae of mice in the I.M. group. Tumor cell infiltration was relatively high in the bone marrow. Spinal cord compression caused by invasion of the tumor mass outside the pia mater was observed in the thoracic vertebrae of the spinal cord. In conclusion, we have reported a mouse model of tumor growth with paraparesis that may be used to assess novel therapeutic agents for ATL with CNS involvement.

淋巴细胞恶性疾病HTLV-Ⅰ抗原及抗体的测定分析

本文以间接免疫萤光法测定96例淋巴细胞恶性患者血清中抗人T细胞白血病病毒Ⅰ型(HTLV—1)抗体。其中,80例急性淋巴细胞白血病;12例非何杰金氏淋巴瘤;4例慢性淋巴细胞白血病。发现一例成人抗HTLV—1抗体阳性,抗体滴度1:80,阳性率1.04％。並在培养细胞中检出HTLV—1抗原阳性细胞,前后两次阳性率分别为1.7～1.5％(P>0.05)。确诊病人已感染本病毒,提示HTLV—1已传入江西。认为测定HTLV—1抗原比抗体更重要,可用于早期确诊及游行病学调查。

Role of post-translational modifications of HTLV-1 Tax in NF-κB activation

Human T-cell leukemia virus type 1(HTLV-1),the first human retrovirus discovered,is the etiological agent of adult-T-cell leukemia/lymphoma.The HTLV-1 encoded Tax protein is a potent oncoprotein that deregulates gene expression by constitutively activating nuclear factor-κB(NF-κB).Tax activation of NF-κB is critical for the immortalization and survival of HTLV-1-infected T cells.In this review,we summarize the present knowledge on mechanisms underlying Tax-mediated NF-κB activation,with an emphasis on post-translational modifications of Tax.

Cancer and Infectious Causes

Various kinds of organisms, including viruses, bacteria, trematodes and fungi are known carcinogens that cause cancer. Infectious identification related to cancer may lead to better treatment for both the prevention and targeting of cancer therapy. Although nearly 20% of all cancers are caused by an infection of a microbe, the amount of evidence and information regarding the mechanisms associated with oncogenesis varies dramatically from one organism to the next. This review cannot be exhaustive because we are not aware of all infections worldwide in addition to their potential mechanisms for oncogenesis. More research is required for all of the species mentioned in this review.

南昌地区人群中T细胞白血病病毒1型抗体调查

应用明胶颗粒凝集试验和间接免疫萤光试验,测定南昌地区人群血清中人T细胞白血病病毒1型(HTLV--1)抗体。共712份,其中正常人432份,各类白血病人260份,各类淋巴瘤20份。发现2例阳性,1例成人T细胞淋巴瘤患者(滴度1:80),1例粒细胞白血病患者(滴度1:20),阳性率为0.28％。结果说明南昌地区有HTLV--1感染和传播。