REF:
1 - http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/55/22/5173

2 - Tumorigenesis by mouse mammary tumor virus: Evidence for a common region for provirus integration in mammary tumors
http://www.cell.com/retrieve/pii/009286748390418X

3 - http://www.biowizard.com/pmabstract.php?pmid=20388779
Mouse mammary tumor virus-like sequences in human breast cancer.

4 - http://www.asco.org/ASCOv2/Meetings/Abstracts?&vmview=abst_detail_view&confID=23&abstractID=101838

Human mammary tumor virus (HMTV) is horizontally, not vertically transmitted Print this page


Sub-category:
Epidemiology/Molecular Epidemiology


Category:
Tumor Biology/Immunobiology/Human Genetics


Meeting:
2003 ASCO Annual Meeting


Session Type and Session Title:
General Poster Session, Tumor Biology/Human Genetics


Abstract No:
3511


Citation:
Proc Am Soc Clin Oncol 22: 2003 (abstr 3511)


Author(s):
J. F. Holland, S. Melana, Y. Wang, M. Fernandez-Cobo, J.-D. Jiang, B. G.-T. Pogo; Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY

Abstract:

Postulating that an HMTV, if it existed, would be closely similar to MMTV, known to cause breast cancer in laboratory and feral mice, we sought by PCR a 660 bp sequence of the MMTV env gene which is absolutely unique in the GenBank. Finding the env sequence in human breast cancer would suggest viral presence. Of 500 American women's breast cancers, 38% contain the sequence, 95% homologous to MMTV. Normal breast tissue from the same patient or from mammoplastic reductions do not. The entire 9kb viral HMTV sequence, 95% homologous to MMTV, but distinct from endogenous retrovirus, has been identified in breast cancer by molecular and electron microscopic techniques. Geographic variation in positivity, e.g. 75% in Tunisia, 27 to 38% in the Americas, 10% in China, is consistent with the global distribution of different mouse species with different genetic loads of MMTV, and is roughly proportional to breast cancer incidence. Antibodies are found in sera of a high proportion of breast cancer patients but not in sera of control women. Co-culture of virus-containing breast cancer cells with normal lymphocytes is in progress. Taken together, these data support the proposition that a major portion of human breast cancer is associated with an infectious exogenous virus, similar to or identical with MMTV. The absence of viral sequences in normal tissues when breast cancer cells contain them excludes germ line transmission and indicates that horizontal transmission has occurred.

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