Caught in the antiviral crossfire Ganciclovir-associated mutagenesis in HSC transplant recipients

In this issue of Cell Stem Cell, de Kanter et al. (2021) show that most allogeneic hematopoietic stem cells do not acquire additional somatic mutations following transplantation. However, they observe somatic mutagenesis associated with the antiviral drug ganciclovir and find plausible evidence that it may contribute to some post-transplant malignancies.

Automated summary

The study demonstrates that most allogeneic hematopoietic stem cells do not acquire additional somatic mutations post-transplantation, but suggests that the antiviral drug ganciclovir may contribute to some post-transplant malignancies through somatic mutagenesis.