title: Recent developments linking retroviruses to human breast cancer: infectious agent, enemy within or both?
abstract: Evidence is accumulating that one or more beta-retrovirus is associated with human breast cancer. Retroviruses can exist as an infectious (exogenous) virus or as a part of the genetic information of cells due to germline integration (endogenous). An exogenous virus with a genome that is highly homologous to mouse mammary tumour virus is gaining acceptance as possibly being associated with human breast cancer, and recently furnished evidence is discussed in this article, as is the evidence for involvement of an endogenous human beta-retrovirus, HERV-K. Modes of interaction are also reviewed and linkages to the APOBEC3 family are suggested.
authors.affiliation: Austrianova, 20 Biopolis Way, 05-518 Centros, Republic of Singapore 138668.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Salmons
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: James S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Lawson
authors.affiliation: Institute of Virology, Department of Pathobiology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Walter H
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Günzburg
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000821:virology*; D020077:Endogenous Retroviruses / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000472:pathogenicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D012192:Retroviridae Infections / Q000473:pathology*