A human endogenous retrovirus-derived gene that can contribute to oncogenesis by activating the ERK pathway and inducing migration and invasion.

ABSTRACT: Endogenous retroviruses are cellular genes of retroviral origin captured by their host during the course of evolution and represent around 8% of the human genome. Although most are defective and transcriptionally silenced, some are still able to generate retroviral-like particles and proteins. Among these, the HERV-K(HML2) family is remarkable since its members have amplified relatively recently and many of them still have full length coding genes. Furthermore, they are induced in cancers, especially in melanoma, breast cancer and germ cell tumours, where viral particles, as well as the envelope protein (Env), can be detected. Here we show that HERV-K(HML2) Env per se has oncogenic properties. Its expression in a non-tumourigenic human breast epithelial cell line induces epithelial to mese

SUBMITTER: Lemaitre C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5501692 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature