@article{kusuhara_anderson_pettiford_green_1999, 
  title={Human T-Cell Leukemia Virus Type 2 Rex Protein Increases Stability and Promotes Nuclear to Cytoplasmic  Transport of gag/pol and env RNAs}, 
  volume={73}, 
  DOI={10.1128/jvi.73.10.8112-8119.1999}, 
  abstractNote={<jats:p>The human T-cell leukemia virus (HTLV) Rex protein is essential for efficient expression of the viral structural and enzymatic gene products. In this study, we assessed the role of the HTLV-2<jats:italic>rex</jats:italic> gene in viral RNA expression and Gag protein production. Following transfection of human JM4 T cells with wild-type and <jats:italic>rex</jats:italic> mutant full-length proviral constructs, PCR was used for semiquantitative analysis of specific viral RNA transcripts. In the presence of Rex, the total amount of steady-state viral RNA was increased fourfold. Rex significantly up-regulated the level of incompletely spliced RNAs by increasing RNA stability and was associated with a twofold down-regulation of the completely spliced<jats:italic>tax/rex</jats:italic> RNA. PCR analysis of subcellular RNA fractions, isolated from transfected cells, indicated that the level of<jats:italic>gag/pol</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>env</jats:italic> cytoplasmic RNAs were increased 7- to 9-fold in the presence of Rex, whereas Gag protein production was increased 130-fold. These data indicate that HTLV-2 Rex increases the stability and promotes nucleus-to-cytoplasm transport of the incompletely spliced viral RNAs, ultimately resulting in increased structural protein production. Moreover, this model system provides a sensitive approach to further characterize HTLV gene expression from full-length proviral clones following transfection of human T cells.</jats:p>}, 
  number={10}, 
  publisher={American Society for Microbiology}, 
  author={Kusuhara, Koichi and Anderson, Matthew and Pettiford, Sherrie M. and Green, Patrick L.}, 
  year={1999}
  }