Autoantigen can promote progression to a more aggressive TCL1 leukemia by selecting variants with enhanced B-cell receptor signaling

These studies indicate that autoantigen-reactivity plays a role in the progression of a murine leukemia that models human chronic lymphocytic leukemia. This indication is consistent with the notion that chronic lymphocytic leukemia evolves by selection of normal B cells that bind autoantigen via the B-cell antigen receptor.