Cimolai N
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
Can J Microbiol. 2001 Aug;47(8):691-7.
A linkage between mycoplasmas and malignancy was mainly proposed in the 1960s when human-associated mycoplasmas were becoming of interest given the novel characterization of the human respiratory pathogen Mycoplasma pneumoniae. Associations with leukemia and other malignancies, however, were largely ascribed to tissue-culture contamination, which is now recognized as a significant potential problem in molecular biology circles. A few epidemiological studies, however, continue to raise concern over such a linkage. As well, in vitro data have demonstrated the potential for some mycoplasmas to induce karyotypic changes and malignant transformation during chronic tissue-culture infestation. As cellular and molecular mechanisms for such transformation become studied, a resurgence of interest in this area is inevitable. A role for mycoplasmas in malignancy of any sort is conjectural, but there remains a need to continue with focussed epidemiological and laboratory investigations.
支原体与恶性肿瘤之间的联系最初是在20世纪60年代提出的，当时鉴于人类呼吸道病原体肺炎支原体的新特性，与人类相关的支原体开始受到关注。然而，与白血病和其他恶性肿瘤的关联很大程度上归因于组织培养污染，如今这在分子生物学领域被公认为是一个重大潜在问题。不过，一些流行病学研究仍在继续引发人们对这种联系的担忧。此外，体外数据表明，某些支原体在慢性组织培养感染过程中具有诱导核型变化和恶性转化的潜力。随着对这种转化的细胞和分子机制的研究不断深入，该领域必然会重新受到关注。支原体在任何类型的恶性肿瘤中所起的作用尚无定论，但仍有必要继续进行有针对性的流行病学和实验室研究。
