Epidemiologists at the CDC in Atlanta, GA, have called you in to investigate an increased incidence of leukemia in a remote region of Africa. Shortly after you arrive, an RNA virus was isolated from patients and found to induce leukemia in mice
At this point, you don't know the viral gene product or the mechanism that causes development of leukemia. One of your lab assistants has isolated a variant of the virus that is missing 20% of the genome of the original virus and does not induce leukemia in mice.
a) How would you determine which portion of the genome is associated with the development of leukemia?
b) How would you determine the viral product or mechanism associated with the development of leukemia?
What will be an ideal response?
Answer:
a) Sequence the viral DNA from each virus strain and compare the sequence. Mutate the suspected gene in the normal virus and assay its effect on causing leukemia in mice.
b) Look within the viral genome for sequences of a known oncogene (such as src), or test infected cells for viral genome insertion near or within a cellular proto-oncogene.
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Answer the following statement true (T) or false (F)
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