Detection of mRNA for the tax1/rex1 gene of human T-cell leukemia virus type I in fresh peripheral blood mononuclear cells of adult T-cell leukemia patients and viral carriers by using the polymerase chain reaction.
Expression of human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I) is not detectable by immunofluorescence analysis or RNA blot analysis in most fresh peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with adult T-cell leukemia or of asymptomatic HTLV-I carriers. However, in this work, mRNA for the HTLV-I tax1/rex1 genes was detected in fresh peripheral blood mononuclear cells of adult T-cell leukemia patients and asymptomatic HTLV-I carriers by using reverse transcription followed by the polymerase chain reaction. By using fresh peripheral blood mononuclear cells, the expression of tax1/rex1 mRNA was detected in five of the six adult T-cell leukemia patients and four of the eight HTLV-I carriers examined. The amounts of tax1/rex1 mRNA detected corresponded to approximately 10(5) to 10(6) times less than that in the HTLV-I-infected MT-2 cell line. These results indicate that, in some individuals infected with HTLV-I, the provirus in circulating blood cells is transcribed in vivo. Thus the expression of viral antigens in circulating blood cells in vivo is suggested.
Kinoshita
T
T
Virology Division, National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan.
Shimoyama
M
M
Tobinai
K
K
Ito
M
M
Ito
S
S
Ikeda
S
S
Tajima
K
K
Shimotohno
K
K
Sugimura
T
T
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001483:Base Sequence; D002353:Carrier State; D002460:Cell Line; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase; D005260:Female; D005784:Gene Amplification; D005814:Genes, Viral; D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies / Q000032:analysis; D015486:HTLV-I Antigens / Q000235:genetics; D015490:HTLV-I Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000382:microbiology*; D015368:Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009000:Monocytes / Q000382:microbiology*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics*; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics*; D015534:Trans-Activators; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D015481:HTLV-I Antibodies; D015486:HTLV-I Antigens; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D012367:RNA, Viral; D015534:Trans-Activators; D014157:Transcription Factors; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase