Env in MMTV
The Mouse Mammary Tumor Virus (MMTV) env gene codes for a polyprotein that is cleaved to yield the surface (SU) and transmembrane (TM) Env products. Gp52 is the SU subunit in MMTV and gp36 is the TM subunit. The MMTV Env amino acid sequence is: 418-PAYDYAAIIVKRPPYVLLPVDIGD-441. Gp52 is a 52,000-dalton glycoprotein and gp36 is a 36,000-dalton glycoprotein.
MMTV Env is of particular interest to researchers because of the discovery that it encodes an immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM) that has been shown to transform human and murine mammary cell in culture. This ITAM depolarizes epithelial acinar structures, thereby changing the phenotype of the cells and causing them to become cancerous.
Read more about this topic: Env (gene)