ArticleRetrovirology2009
Human endogenous retrovirus HERV-K(HML-2) encodes a stable signal peptide with biological properties distinct from Rec.
Article in Retrovirology, 2009. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 41 citations in OpenAlex.
- Characterization of HERV-K (HML-2) Rec proteins encoded in the human genome and their post-transcriptional function.Journal of virology · 2025Article
- The expression, regulation, and function of human endogenous retroviruses in genitourinary cancers.Cell death discovery · 2025Review
- Human endogenous retrovirus K (HERV-K) envelope structures in pre- and postfusion by cryo-EM.Science advances · 2025Article
- Article
- Endogenous retroviruses are dysregulated in ALS.iScience · 2024Article
- Life after Cleavage: The Story of a β-Retroviral (MMTV) Signal Peptide-From Murine Lymphoma to Human Breast Cancer.Viruses · 2022Review
- Mouse Mammary Tumor Virus (MMTV) and MMTV-like Viruses: An In-depth Look at a Controversial Issue.Viruses · 2022Review
- Ancient Adversary - HERV-K (HML-2) in Cancer.Frontiers in oncology · 2021Review
- Is the HERV-K HML-2 Xq21.33, an endogenous retrovirus mutated by gene conversion of chromosome X in a subset of African populations, associated with human breast cancer?Infectious agents and cancer · 2020Article
- Retroviruses of the Human Virobiota: The Recycling of Viral Genes and the Resulting Advantages for Human Hosts During Evolution.Frontiers in microbiology · 2020Review
- Article
- Human endogenous retrovirus-K (HML-2): a comprehensive review.Critical reviews in microbiology · 2018Review
- Transcriptional profiling of HERV-K(HML-2) in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and potential implications for expression of HML-2 proteins.Molecular neurodegeneration · 2018Article
- A new immunization and treatment strategy for mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV) associated cancers.Oncotarget · 2016Article
- Human endogenous retrovirus K and cancer: Innocent bystander or tumorigenic accomplice?International journal of cancer · 2015Review
- HERV-K(HML-2) rec and np9 transcripts not restricted to disease but present in many normal human tissues.Mobile DNA · 2015Article
- Human endogenous retroviruses and the nervous system.Handbook of clinical neurology · 2014Review
- Transcriptional profiling of human endogenous retrovirus group HERV-K(HML-2) loci in melanoma.Genome biology and evolution · 2013Article
- SAMHD1 restricts HIV-1 infection in resting CD4(+) T cells.Nature medicine · 2012Article
- Immunotherapeutic potential of anti-human endogenous retrovirus-K envelope protein antibodies in targeting breast tumors.Journal of the National Cancer Institute · 2012Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe human endogenous retrovirus HERV-K(HML-2) family is associated with testicular germ cell tumors (GCT). Various HML-2 proviruses encode viral proteins such as Env and Rec.
resultsWe describe here that HML-2 Env gives rise to a 13 kDa signal peptide (SP) that harbors a different C-terminus compared to Rec. Subsequent to guiding Env to the endoplasmatic reticulum (ER), HML-2 SP is released into the cytosol. Biochemical analysis and confocal microscopy demonstrated that similar to Rec, SP efficiently translocates to the granular component of nucleoli. Unlike Rec, SP does not shuttle between nucleus and cytoplasm. SP is less stable than Rec as it is subjected to proteasomal degradation. Moreover, SP lacks export activity towards HML-2 genomic RNA, the main function of Rec in the original viral context, and SP does not interfere with Rec's RNA export activity.
conclusionSP is a previously unrecognized HML-2 protein that, besides targeting and translocation of Env into the ER lumen, may exert biological functions distinct from Rec. HML-2 SP represents another functional similarity with the closely related Mouse Mammary Tumor Virus that encodes an Env-derived SP named p14. Our findings furthermore support the emerging concept of bioactive SPs as a conserved retroviral strategy to modulate their host cell environment, evidenced here by a "retroviral fossil". While the specific role of HML-2 SP remains to be elucidated in the context of human biology, we speculate that it may be involved in immune evasion of GCT cells or tumorigenesis.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.