Polyclonal lymphocytosis of T-cells associated with human T-cell leukemia virus I.

A patient with antibodies to human T-cell leukemia virus type I and the presence of integrated sequences of this virus in T-lymphocytes was investigated. In contrast to previous reports, the T-cell lymphocytosis was found to be polyclonal by analysis of human T-cell leukemia virus type I integration sites and T-cell antigen receptor rearrangements. Polyclonal T-cell infection by human T-cell leukemia virus type I may represent an infrequently observed stage of leukemogenesis.