title: Reconstitution of mice with bone marrow cells expressing the SCL gene is insufficient to cause leukemia.
abstract: Rearrangement or translocation of the SCL gene is the most common genetic abnormality observed in human T-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia and results in the aberrant expression of SCL. To examine the oncogenic potential of this gene, an SCL-retrovirus was used to infect mouse bone marrow cells, which were then used to reconstitute C57/BL6 mice. Expression of SCL did not perturb the composition nor number of day 12 or day 13 colony forming unit-spleen. In total, 141 mice reconstituted with SCL-infected bone marrow and 103 control-mice were monitored for up to 2 years with no difference in survival, hematocrit, white cell count, or differential white cell count. As expected, from day 200 onwards, mice died due to radiation-induced thymomas; SCL provirus was not detected in these tumors. Thus, despite SCL being strongly implicated in the development of human leukemia, its enforced expression in mice using a retrovirus and bone marrow reconstitution was insufficient to generate leukemia.
authors.affiliation: Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: N J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Elwood
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Begley
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000821:virology*; D015342:DNA Probes / Q000235:genetics; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000235:genetics; D018014:Gene Transfer Techniques; D006412:Hematopoietic Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D015459:Leukemia-Lymphoma, Adult T-Cell / Q000235:genetics*; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D012190:Retroviridae / Q000235:genetics; D000073942:T-Cell Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia Protein 1; D014157:Transcription Factors; D016662:Virus Integration
chemical_list: D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D015342:DNA Probes; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D000073942:T-Cell Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia Protein 1; D014157:Transcription Factors; C489366:Tal1 protein, mouse