Prognosis Biomarkers Evaluation in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Publication date: Available online 1 February 2017
Source:Hematology/Oncology and Stem Cell Therapy
Author(s): Lorena Caixeta Gomes, Fernanda Cristina Gontijo Evangelista, Lirlândia Pires de Sousa, Sergio Schusterschitz da Silva Araujo, Maria das Graças Carvalho, Adriano de Paula Sabino
Objective/BackgroundFrom clinical and biological points of view, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a heterogeneous disease characterized by a progressive accumulation of lymphocytes in the peripheral blood, bone marrow, and lymphoid organs. New prognostic markers in CLL may be useful to clinicians for predicting outcome and in clinical decision-making. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential prognostic value of the apoptotic/survival-controlling proteins and protein tyrosine kinase ZAP-70 gene expression in CLL patients and control individuals, correlating such findings with patients' clinical data.MethodsFifty-three patients diagnosed with CLL attending the hematology service of a clinical hospital, and 24 healthy individuals with no history of leukemia (Control group) were enrolled in this study. Analyses of apoptotic/survival-controlling proteins were performed by western blot and ZAP-70 gene expression was evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction.ResultsSignificant differences were observed for the p-p38, Mcl-1 long, and Mcl-1 short proteins when patients were compared with CLL and controls. A positive correlation between the results for Mcl-1 short and Mcl-1 long and lymphocyte count was observed, corroborating the hypothesis of an imbalance between proteins of cell survival pathways/apoptosis in CLL.ConclusionZAP-70 gene expression was not detected as a discriminant biomarker in these CLL patients. An imbalance between apoptosis-related proteins was observed in the present study, corroborating the hypothesis of increased survival of lymphocytes in CLL patients.



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