TRANSGENIC MODELS FOR PAPILLOMAVIRUS-ASSOCIATED MULTISTEP CARCINOGENESIS

To investigate the physiological and pathological in vivo functions of molecularly cloned genes, the transgenic mouse is one of the most use ful experimental animal systems. Many kinds of transgenic mice carryin g papillomavirus genes have been produced, and the studies have reveal ed several new aspects in the held of papillomaviral oncology. Among t hese transgenic mice, the mechanism of skin carcinogenesis in the bovi ne papillomavirus (BPV) transgenic mouse has been well characterized, demonstrating that numbers of genetic alterations in specific cellular genes were deeply involved in tumor progression as well as in the exp ression of transforming genes encoded by the viral genome. Comparable mechanisms were found in testicular tumorigenesis in the HPV 16 E6E7 t ransgenic mouse. Here we discuss the mechanism of testicular tumorigen esis in the HPV 16 E6E7 transgenic mouse together with that of skin ca rcinogenesis in the BPV transgenic mouse in order to clarify some part of papillomavirus-associated carcinogenesis.