The rel gene and its role in oncogenesis

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Virology
• Developmental Biology

Background:

• The rel oncogene, found in the REV-T virus, induces rapidly fatal lymphomas in birds.
• The precise mechanism of lymphomagenesis by v-rel is not fully understood.
• v-rel protein exhibits unusual localization, found in both cytoplasm and nucleus.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the biology of the REV-T virus, which harbors the rel oncogene.
• To examine the structure of the rel gene and the properties of its protein product.
• To compare the rel protein with its Drosophila homolog, dorsal.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of studies on REV-T virus and the rel oncogene.
• Analysis of the structural and functional properties of the v-rel protein.
• Comparative analysis between v-rel and Drosophila dorsal.

Main Results:

• v-rel protein transforms avian lymphoid cells irrespective of its cellular localization.
• The rel gene shows high homology to the Drosophila dorsal gene.
• Dorsal is involved in determining dorsal-ventral polarity in embryonic development.

Conclusions:

• The rel oncogene's ability to transform cells regardless of location suggests a unique oncogenic mechanism.
• Structural and functional comparisons with dorsal may elucidate the role of rel in lymphomagenesis.
• Understanding rel's function could provide insights into avian lymphoma development.