Monitoring of WT-1 gene expression in peripheral blood of patients with acute leukemia by semiquantitative RT-PCR; possible marker for detection of minimal residual leukemia.
The expression of the WT-1 gene which is found exclusively in human leukemic blasts frequently disappears from bone marrow of leukemia patients in complete remission (CR). Using semiquantitative RT-PCR, we investigated the expression of the WT-1 gene in peripheral bloods (PBs) of 33 patients with acute leukemia (AML 26; ALL 7) and monitored its expression after achievement of CR. None of the 6 normal controls expressed detectable levels of WT-1 transcripts (< 10(-4), background level), whereas 31 (93.9%) of 33 patients expressed variable levels of WT-1 transcripts (range, 10(-4) to 10(1)) at diagnosis. The level of WT-1 expression was not different between AML and ALL. By monitoring WT-1 gene expression in PB of 31 patients during CR, 5 patients relapsed (two from the 18 patients with undetectable levels of WT-1 gene expression and three from the 13 with WT-1 gene expression in low levels). Three of the 5 relapsed patients showed preceding reappearance or rise of WT-1 gene expression. From these results, we reconfirmed that the WT-1 gene is a pan-acute leukemic marker, which can be used to monitor minimal residual leukemia (MRL) after chemotherapy or in patients with CR.
Kim
S C
SC
Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Yoo
N C
NC
Hahn
J S
JS
Lee
S
S
Chong
S Y
SY
Min
Y H
YH
Ko
Y W
YW
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics*; D018365:Neoplasm, Residual; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics*; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D009396:Wilms Tumor / Q000235:genetics*
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor