title: Hypermethylation of the p15INK4B gene promoter in B-chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
abstract: The p15 gene is a putative tumor suppressor gene that encodes a member of the cyclin dependent kinase inhibitors. Inactivation of p15 by promoter hypermethylation has been postulated as a possible way by which tumor suppressor genes are inactivated in cancer. In this study, we examined the methylation status of the p15 gene promoter in 34 patients with B-Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (B-CLL), by the Methylation-Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction. Selective methylation of the p15 gene promoter was found in 4/34 cases (11.8%). According to Rai staging, the four patients with methylated p15 were staged on diagnosis as: 1 on Stage 0, 1 in Stage I, 1 in Stage III, and 1 in Stage IV. Our results suggest that methylation of the p15 gene promoter can be detected in a small subset of B-CLL patients, at all stages of the disease.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine Propaedeutic, University General Hospital Attikon, Haidari, Greece. sotirispapageorgiou@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Sotirios G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Papageorgiou
authors.forename: Stefanos
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lambropoulos
authors.forename: Vassiliki
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Pappa
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Economopoulou
authors.forename: Frinta
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kontsioti
authors.forename: Efstathios
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Papageorgiou
authors.forename: Panagiotis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Tsirigotis
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dervenoulas
authors.forename: Theofanis
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Economopoulos
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D018899:CpG Islands; D050762:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p15 / Q000235:genetics*; D019175:DNA Methylation; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015451:Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins
chemical_list: D050762:Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p15; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins