BACH2 and infection: Meanwhile, our data showed a statistically significant reduction in the expression level of menin mRNA in PBMCs from HAM/TSP and ATL patients compared to NCs, and the expression level of bach2 mRNA in PBMCs from HTLV-1 infected individuals was significantly lower than that in NCs, irrespective of the infection status (i.e., HAM/TSP, ATL, ACs).