The etiology of Burkitt's lymphoma and the history of the shaken dogmas.
The etiology of Burkitt's lymphoma (BL) includes three factors which operate in a stepwise fashion: (1) the ubiquitous Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) which possesses oncogenic potential when it infects infants or very young children; (2) malaria which specifically depresses cytotoxic T cell clones controlling the polyclonal proliferation of EBV-infected B cells in the host; and (3) chromosomal translocations activating the c-myc oncogene which in turn induces uncontrolled B cell proliferation. The unravelling of such a multistep carcinogenic process has shaken a number of well-established dogmas of our time.
Unité d'Epidémiologie des Virus Oncogènes, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France.
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D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D002051:Burkitt Lymphoma / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D002898:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 8; D016259:Genes, myc; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000472:pathogenicity; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008288:Malaria / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology; D012107:Research Design; D013602:T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / Q000276:immunology; D014178:Translocation, Genetic