[Oncogenes].

Within a very short time the application of molecular biology to cancer research has resulted in an essential change and extension of our knowledge of transformation processes and tumor development. For the first time these mechanisms can be understood in a causal manner and causal cancer therapy seems to be possible in the near future. In this manuscript an attempt is made to give a brief survey of the influence of oncogenes on carcinogenesis. An account is given of the origin of viral oncogenes, viral mechanisms of cell transformation and activation of cellular oncogenes. Additionally, kinetics and targets of tumor proteins are discussed. The complexity and diversity of genetic regulation of growth and differentiation is discussed in some well known diseases such as chronic myeloid leukemia, Burkitt lymphoma, retinoblastoma and acute myeloid leukemia.