Retroviruses and primate evolution

Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs), probably representing footprints of ancient germ-cell retroviral infections, occupy about 1% of the human genome. HERVs can influence genome regulation through expression of retroviral genes, either via genomic rearrangements following HERV integrations or through the involvement of HERV LTRs in the regulation of gene expression. Some HERVs emerged in the genome over 30 MYr ago, while others have appeared rather recently, at about the time of hominid and ape lineages divergence. HERVs might have conferred antiviral resistance on early human ancestors, thus helping them to survive. Furthermore, newly integrated HERVs could have changed the pattern of gene expression and therefore played a significant role in the evolution and divergence of Hominoidea superfamily. Comparative analysis of HERVs, HERV LTRs, neighboring genes, and their regulatory interplay in the human and ape genomes will help us to understand the possible impact of HERVs on evolution and genome regulation in the primates. BioEssays 22:161-171, 2000.     

反转录病毒感染与肿瘤发生

病毒感染与癌症的关系是生物医学领域中非常重要的研究方向, 估计当前全世界至少20% 人类肿瘤的发生与病毒感染有密切联系。本文对反转录病毒诱发肿瘤的各种作用机制进行了详细阐述。根据致病速度的快慢, 反转录病毒被分为两大类: 能迅速诱导肿瘤产生的急性转化反转录病毒和缓慢诱导肿瘤产生的非急性转化反转录病毒。急性转化反转录病毒通过其自身携带的癌基因快速诱导肿瘤产生, 而细胞原癌基因的插入激活则是非急性转化反转录病毒引起肿瘤的主要机制。对反转录病毒致瘤机制的研究揭示了肿瘤发生过程中的一些重要原理和机制, 包括原癌基因激活以及肿瘤抑制基因失活等, 对探讨非病毒引起的人类肿瘤的发生机制同样具有重要的参考意义。     

Retroviruses and the placenta

Retroviruses are often expressed in the placenta. Placental expression probably evolved to facilitate retroviral transmission from mother to offspring and from offspring to mother. In the process, the placenta became a site where retroviral genes were 'domesticated' to serve adaptive functions in the host, including the manipulation of maternal physiology for the benefit of the fetus. The evolutionary interplay between retroviruses and host defenses may have contributed to the remarkable diversity of form among mammalian placentas and to mechanisms of genomic imprinting.     

Retroviruses and Oncogenes I

The relationship between retroviral genes and oncogenes is described     

Novel Denisovan and Neanderthal Retroviruses

Following the recent availability of high-coverage genomes for Denisovan and Neanderthal hominids, we conducted a screen for endogenized retroviruses, identifying six novel, previously unreported HERV-K(HML2) elements (HERV-K is human endogenous retrovirus K). These elements are absent from the human genome (hg38) and appear to be unique to archaic hominids. These findings provide further evidence supporting the recent activity of the HERV-K(HML2) group, which has been implicated in human disease. They will also provide insights into the evolution of archaic hominids.     

Retroviruses and nervous system disease.

During the past decade retroviruses have been recognized as causes of human neurological disease. A wide clinical spectrum of neurological and neuromuscular diseases have been reported with HIV infections, and studies of these diseases have raised novel and exciting hypotheses of pathogenesis. As yet the full clinical spectrum of diseases associated with HTLV-1 has yet to be defined, and the pathogenesis of the chronic spastic paraparesis remains a mystery. Chronic neurological diseases in animals caused by both oncoviruses and lentiviruses can provide some clues to the pathogenesis of these newly recognized human neurological illnesses.     

Retroviruses at a glance

A report from the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory 2000 conference on Retroviruses, Cold Spring Harbor, May 23-28, 2000.     

Endogenous Retroviruses in Domestic Animals

Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) are genomic elements that are present in a wide range of vertebrates. Although the study of ERVs has been carried out mainly in humans and model organisms, recently, domestic animals have become important, and some species have begun to be analyzed to gain further insight into ERVs. Due to the availability of complete genomes and the development of new computer tools, ERVs can now be analyzed from a genome-wide viewpoint. In addition, more experimental work is being carried out to analyze the distribution, expression and interplay of ERVs within a host genome. Cats, cattle, chicken, dogs, horses, pigs and sheep have been scrutinized in this manner, all of which are interesting species in health and economic terms. Furthermore, several studies have noted differences in the number of endogenous retroviruses and in the variability of these elements among different breeds, as well as their expression in different tissues and the effects of their locations, which, in some cases, are near genes. These findings suggest a complex, intriguing relationship between ERVs and host genomes. In this review, we summarize the most important in silico and experimental findings, discuss their implications and attempt to predict future directions for the study of these genomic elements.