v-abl causes hematopoietic disease distinct from that caused by bcr-abl.
v-abl, the oncogene transduced by Abelson murine leukemia virus, was first characterized by its ability to transform lymphoid cells. bcr-abl, the oncogene formed by a t(9;22) translocation thought to occur in human hematopoietic stem cells, is detectable in almost all cases of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), a malignancy of granulocytic cells. bcr-abl also causes a CML-like syndrome in mice whose bone-marrow cells are infected with a retrovirus transducing the gene. More recent reports have suggested that v-abl can, however, cause a disease similar to CML. We demonstrate here that v-abl, when transduced in a helper virus-containing system, causes disease similar to, but distinct from, the CML-like syndrome induced by bcr-abl. Animals whose bone marrow has been infected by v-abl virus develop modest splenomegaly, marked granulocytosis, and malignant disease of several hematopoietic cell types. Unlike animals with CML-like disease resulting from bcr-abl, the polymorphonuclear leukocytes from animals infected with a v-abl construct do not contain the v-abl provirus at a significant frequency. Histopathologic analysis also shows significant differences between the diseases caused by v-abl and bcr-abl.
Scott
M L
ML
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Nine Cambridge Center, MA 02142.
Van Etten
R A
RA
Daley
G Q
GQ
Baltimore
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D
D000011:Abelson murine leukemia virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D000818:Animals; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000473:pathology; D002460:Cell Line; D016044:Fusion Proteins, bcr-abl / Q000235:genetics*; D016313:Genes, abl; D006412:Hematopoietic Stem Cells / Q000473:pathology*; D007942:Leukemia, Experimental / Q000235:genetics* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D009857:Oncogenes; D011533:Proviruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013154:Spleen / Q000473:pathology
D016044:Fusion Proteins, bcr-abl