Studies on the oncogenic potential of Epstein-Barr-virus (EBV)-infected B cells in AIDS-related disorders.
Spontaneous lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) were established from the peripheral blood of 10 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-seropositive patients in order to investigate whether or not progression of the cells towards a malignant state could be traced. The LCLs studied displayed no differences in their surface phenotype, karyotype, and tumorigenicity in nude mice as compared with a wide panel of control LCLs. Furthermore, no c-myc rearrangement could be detected in any of the LCLs. However, 4 of the 10 LCLs derived from HIV-seropositive patients formed colonies in agar with a cloning efficiency of 0.1-0.9%. This percentage was much lower than that of a control neoplastic B cell line (50%), but consistently higher than that observed for a battery of spontaneous LCLs. The cells of a number of sublines that were derived from the agar colonies expressed new activation markers (CD10 and Bac-1) but did not induce tumors in nude mice or display chromosomal abnormalities. These sublines might comprise cells that have progressed towards a more markedly transformed state.
Roncella
S
S
Servizio di Immunologia Clinica, Istituto Nazionale per la Ricerca sul Cancro, IST Genoa, Italy.
Caretto
P
P
Forni
G
G
Cutrona
G
G
Verde
A
A
Ramarli
D
D
di Celle
P F
PF
Foà
R
R
Sessarego
M
M
Pistoia
V
V
D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D000954:Antigens, Surface / Q000032:analysis; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology*; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002472:Cell Transformation, Viral; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000150:complications*; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007621:Karyotyping; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D009374:Neoplasms, Experimental / Q000473:pathology; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D016271:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D000954:Antigens, Surface; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D016271:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc