An early study by Lazzi et al. (2002) demonstrated that Tat protein is detected in AIDS-related B-cell lymphomas with noticeable intracellular localization identified through IHC, and the hypothesis is that soluble Tat protein circulating in the serum of HIV-infected individuals can become internalized by non-host cells, where they act to promote oncogenic events. Here, TAT is linked to B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.