NUCLEAR DOTS - ACTORS ON MANY STAGES

Nuclear dots (NDs), alternatively designated nuclear bodies (NBs), PML oncogenic domains (PODs), nuclear domain 10 (ND10) or Kr-bodies, beca me a major topic for researchers in many fields only recently. Origina lly described as an autoantigenic target in patients with primary bili ary cirrhosis, they are now also known to play a role in development o f acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) and possibly other forms of neopl asia. Size, number and composition of NDs are regulated throughout the cell cycle. Infection with herpes simplex virus, adenovirus, cytomega lovirus, Epstein-Barr-virus, influenza virus and human T cell lymphotr opic virus type I (HTLV I) strongly modifies ND structure through vira l regulatory proteins. Due to this finding and because at least three of the cellular Nn proteins are highly interferon-inducible, a functio n of NDs in early viral infection or in antiviral response has been po stulated. Functional data are currently available only for two of the ND-associated proteins. The Sp100 protein seems to have transcriptiona l transactivating property, whereas the promyelocytic leukemia protein (PML) was reported to suppress growth and transformation. Here, we gi ve a brief overview of the data currently available on NDs. Thus, we h ope to link seemingly unrelated findings in the literature on oncology , virology, cell biology, and immunology.