Case report: TP53 c.848G>A germline mutation as a possible screening target at initial diagnosis for acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

BACKGROUD: Li-Fraumeni syndrome is a hereditary tumor syndrome characterized by an elevated risk of malignancy, particularly acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), which can be caused by the heterozygous germline mutation. TP53 gene germline mutation is considered a potential risk factor and crucial prognostic parameter for acute leukemia development and diagnosis, but rarely occurs in adults, and its specific pathogenic significance in acute leukemia is unclear. CASE PRESENTATION: We describes a case of a 45-year-old woman diagnosed with ALL. Whole-exome sequencing approach identified one of the TP53 germline mutations from her bone marrow sample with possible pathogenic significance, c.848G>A (p.Arg283His) heterozygous missense mutation located on exon 8, which was further verified in her hair, oral mucous and nail samples. Family pedigree screening revealed that the same TP53 genetic variant was present in the patient's father and non-donor son, whereas not in the donor. Digital PCR observed that this point mutation frequency dropped post-transplantation but remained low during maintenance therapy when the patient was leukemia-free. CONCLUSION: This suspected Li-Fraumeni syndrome case report with a likely pathogenic heterozygous TP53 variant expands the cancer genetic spectrum. Screening her family members for mutations facilitates identifying the optimal relative donor and avoids unnecessary treatment by monitoring TP53 germline mutations for minimal residual disease following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Its potential roles in hematological malignant tumor development and clinical pathogenic implications necessitate further probing.

A retrospective study of an irradiation-based conditioning regimen and chidamide maintenance therapy in T-ALL/LBL.

OBJECTIVES: T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia/lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-ALL/LBL) are highly malignant and aggressive hematologic tumors for which there is no standard first-line treatment. Chidamide, a novel histone deacetylase inhibitor, shows great promise. We assessed the efficacy and safety of an irradiation-containing conditioning regimen for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) and post-transplantation chidamide maintenance in patients with T-ALL/LBL. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of six patients with T-ALL/LBL who underwent allo-HSCT with a radiotherapy-containing pretreatment regimen and post-transplant chidamide maintenance therapy. The endpoints were relapse, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), transplant-related mortality (TRM), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and adverse events (AEs). RESULTS: All of the patients had uneventful post-transplant hematopoietic reconstitution, and all achieved complete molecular remission within 30 days. All six patients survived, and two relapsed with a median relapse time of 828.5 (170-1335) days. The 1-year OS rate was 100%, the 2-year PFS rate was 66.7%, and the TRM rate was 0%. After transplantation, two patients developed grade I-II acute GVHD (2/6); grade III-IV acute and chronic GVHD were not observed. The most common AEs following chidamide administration were hematological AEs, which occurred to varying degrees in all patients; liver function abnormalities occurred in two patients (grade 2), and symptoms of malaise occurred in one patient (grade 1). CONCLUSION: Chidamide maintenance therapy after T-ALL/LBL transplantation is safe, but the efficacy needs to be further investigated.

Case report: Donor-derived CLL-1 chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy for relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia bridging to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation after remission.

Background: Explore the efficacy and safety of donor-derived CLL-1 chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy (CAR-T) for relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (R/R AML) bridging to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) after remission. Case presentation: An adult R/R AML patient received an infusion of donor-derived CLL-1 CAR-T cells, and the conditioning regimen bridging to allo-HSCT was started immediately after remission on day 11 after CAR-T therapy upon transplantation. Then, routine post-HSCT monitoring of blood counts, bone marrow (BM) morphology, flow cytometry, graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) manifestations, and chimerism status were performed. Result: After CAR-T therapy, cytokine release syndrome was grade 1. On day 11 after CAR-T therapy, the BM morphology reached complete remission (CR), and the conditioning regimen bridging to allo-HSCT started. Leukocyte engraftment, complete donor chimerism, and platelet engraftment were observed on days +18, +23, and +26 post-allo-HSCT, respectively. The BM morphology showed CR and flow cytometry turned negative on day +23. The patient is currently at 4 months post-allo-HSCT with BM morphology CR, negative flow cytometry, complete donor chimerism, and no extramedullary relapse/GVHD. Conclusion: Donor-derived CLL-1 CAR-T is an effective and safe therapy for R/R AML, and immediate bridging to allo-HSCT after remission may better improve the long-term prognosis of R/R AML.

Demethylating agents in combination with CD7-targeted CAR-T for the successful treatment of a case with mixed-phenotype acute leukemia relapsed after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: A Case Report.

Background: Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) has cured many patients with malignant hematologic diseases such as mixed phenotype acute leukemia (MPAL), while those relapsing after allo-HSCT still exhibit high mortality, poor prognosis, and no standard treatment modalities. It is necessary to explore more therapeutic modalities for patients with post-transplant relapse to obtain a better prognosis. Case presentation: In this case report, a young male with MPAL received allo-HSCT after reaching complete remission (CR) by induction chemotherapy. Unfortunately, relapse of both myeloid and T lineages occurred nine months later. After receiving demethylating chemotherapy, myeloid lineage measurable residual disease (MRD) turned negative. T-lineage MRD turned negative after CD7-targeted chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapy. The bone marrow remained MRD-negative for 4 months. This case preliminarily demonstrated a long-lasting CR with CD7-targeted CAR-T cell therapy, allowing a better prognosis. Conclusion: Demethylating drugs combined with CD7-targeted CAR-T cell therapy is feasible in treating MPAL patients with relapse after transplantation, with good efficacy and safety, which will be a promising treatment option for MPAL.

The novel HLA-C*03:04:99 allele, identified by sanger dideoxy nucleotide sequencing in a Chinese individual.

HLA-C*03:04:99 differs from HLA-C*03:04:01:01 by one nucleotide in exon 5.

[Efficacy and Safety of PEG-rhG-CSF in HSC Mobilization in 71 Normal Healthy Donors for Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation].

OBJECTIVE: To retrospectively analyze the efficacy and safety of pegylated recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (PEG-rhG-CSF) in hematopoietic stem cell mobilization in 71 normal healthy donors for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). METHODS: From March 2018 to July 2019, 71 patients received allo-HSCT in The General Hospital of Western Theater Command were enrolled in the study, a single dose of PEG-rhG-CSF was injected subcutaneously at 12 mg to all the stem cell donors. After injection for 4 days, CD34+ cell number were detected, stem cells were collected on day 4 or 5 according to the CD34+ cell number. The successful collection criteria were CD34+ cells≥2×106/kg, and the excellent collection criteria were CD34+ cells≥4×106/kg. The side effects after mobilization were observed and the collection time, the success rate, excellent rate, and times of the collection were evaluated in the donors, as well as the infused cell number, the engraftment rate, the time of engraftment, and the incidence of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) of the recipients. RESULTS: Seventy-one healthy stem cell donors included 39 males and 32 females with a median age of 38 (16-58) years old. The median number of CD34+ cells on day 4 was 46 (7.4-133)/µl, of which 39 cases with CD34+ cells ≥ 40/µl were collected on day 4, 28 cases with CD34+ cells 20-40/µl were collected on day 5, and 4 cases with CD34+ cells <20/µl were collected on day 5 after a salvage treatment with rhG-CSF. Sixty-five cases were collected once, while 6 cases twice. The median number of collected CD34+ cells was 6.1(3.1-18.1)×106/kg. The success collection rate was 100% (71/71), and the excellent collection rate was 81.6% (58/71). All the cases had varying degrees of muscle and bone soreness, 17 cases (23.9%) had headache, 11 cases (15.5%) had fatigue, and 3 cases (4.2%) had a mild fever. Among 71 recipients, the median number of infused mononuclear cells (MNC) was 8.3(5-23.3)×108/kg, the median number of infused CD34+ cells and CD3+ cells was 5.3(3.1-10.7)×106/kg and 1.9 (0.5-7.6)×108/kg, respectively. Among them, 68 cases (95.8%) had a stable engraftment, the median time of neutrophil engraftment was 11(8-19) days, and the median time of platelet engraftment was 12(8-23) days. Among the 68 cases who were engrafted, 15 cases (22%) had grade Ⅱ-Ⅳ aGVHD, including grade Ⅲ-Ⅳ aGVHD in 3 patients (4.4%), 2 cases (2.9%) died of severe aGVHD. CONCLUSION: For allo-HSCT donor mobilization, PEG-rh-G-CSF is effective, safe, and convenient, providing more options for HSC mobilization.

[Retracted] The inhibitory effect of MEG3/miR-214/AIFM2 axis on the growth of T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma.

Following the publication of this paper, it was drawn to the authors' attention by an interested reader that a row of the tumour images featured in Fig. 8A of the above paper were strikingly similar to those featured in Fig. 6A of an article appearing in Oncology Reports that had been published by a different research group at a different institution [Zhang L, Liang X and Li Y: Long non­coding RNA MEG3 inhibits cell growth of gliomas by targeting miR­93 and inactivating PI3K/AKT pathway. Oncol Rep 38: 2408­2416, 2017]. The Editor asked the authors for an explanation to account for the appearance of strikingly similar data in their paper independently, although the authors proved to be uncontactable in this regard, and did not respond to various queries. The Editor has therefore taken an executive decision to retract this paper from International Journal of Oncology without the agreement of the authors. The Editor apologizes to the readership for any inconvenience caused. [the original article was published in International Journal of Oncology 51: 316­326, 2017; DOI: 10.3892/ijo.2017.4006].

MEG3 affects the progression and chemoresistance of T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma by suppressing epithelial-mesenchymal transition via the PI3K/mTOR pathway.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNA) are emerging as integral functional and regulatory components in the development of different diseases including cancer. Maternally expressed gene 3 (MEG3), is a lncRNA, that has a depressed expression in multiple tumor types, including T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL). However, the molecular mechanisms that regulate the tumorigenic functions of MEG3 in T-LBL remain largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to discover and identify the function of MEG3 in T-LBL tumorigenesis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and drug resistance, and explore their mechanisms of action. Knockdown MEG3 promoted the proliferation, migration, invasion, and drug resistance of T-LBL cells while overexpression of MEG3 gets the opposite results. The mechanism study showed that decreased MEG3 expression in T-LBL cells could activate PI3K/mTOR signaling pathways, increase the expression of p-glycoprotein and affect the expression of EMT markers for transforming to mesenchymal cells in vitro and in vivo. Together, these results indicate that MEG3 could inhibit the migration, invasion, and drug resistance in T-LBL cells by suppression of the PI3K/mTOR pathway. MEG3 might be a potential target, through which poor prognosis with high recurrence and drug resistance of T-LBL in a clinical setting could be reversed.

PD-1 blockade potentially enhances adoptive cytotoxic T cell potency in a human acute myeloid leukaemia animal model.

OBJECTIVES: Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is a malignant haematological disease that remains difficult to cure. Cytotoxic T cell (CTL) adoptive infusion therapy may be conducive to tumour remission by boosting physical immunity. Furthermore, programmed death receptor-1 (PD-1) blockade immunotherapy has shown tremendous success in many cancer therapies. METHOD: We attempted to combine these two immunotherapy strategies to intervene in AML by generating AML cellspecific cytotoxic T lymphocytes in vitro and in vivo with an AML cell strain expressing specific antigens. RESULTS: First, we observed that peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) could be induced to generate large numbers of CD8+ CTL cells through immune stimulation. In addition, these CD8+ cells could effectively recognize a human AML cell line and exert cytotoxicity. In animal tests, PD-1 blockade combined with CTL infusion could induce significantly more AML tumour reduction than either treatment alone. This synergistic effect was thought to be connected to immune modulation enhancement, as regulatory T cells (Tregs) in the peripheral blood (PB) were found to be suppressed. CONCLUSIONS: This finding suggested the potential application of PD-1 blockade in AML. The present work demonstrated an excellent synergistic tumour therapeutic effect of PD-1 blockade and CTL therapy compared with either treatment alone.

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes promote cytarabine-induced acute myeloid leukemia cell apoptosis via inhibiting Bcl-2 expression.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) remains difficult to cure due to its drug tolerance and refractoriness. Immunotherapy is a growing area of cancer research, which has been applied for the treatment of numerous types of cancer, including leukemia. The present study generated AML cell-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) in vitro and investigated the effect of combining CTL treatment with one of the most commonly used drugs for the treatment of hematological malignancies, cytarabine, on AML cell apoptosis. Firstly, it was observed that monocyte-depleted peripheral blood lymphocytes from healthy donors could be used to generate large numbers of CD3+CD8+ CTLs through immune stimulation. These CD3+CD8+ CTLs could effectively recognize and induce the apoptosis of human Kasumi-3 AML cells. In addition, cytarabine-induced AML cell apoptosis was enhanced by CTL treatment. Western blotting revealed that Bcl-2 expression was downregulated in AML cells following cytarabine and CTL treatment, indicating that the synergistic effect of this treatment on AML cell apoptosis is due to the downregulation of Bcl-2. These results highlight the potential application of CTL immunotherapy for the treatment of AML. Further studies optimizing the specificity and potency of CTLs, and identifying favorable combinations with other chemotherapeutic drug are required.

The inhibitory effect of MEG3/miR-214/AIFM2 axis on the growth of T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma.

T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL) is an aggressive malignancy with poor prognosis and high recurrence rate. Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA)-MEG3 is an important tumor suppressor in various cancers. The present study investigated the potential role of maternally expressed gene 3 (MEG3) in the progression of T-LBL. Suppressed expression of MEG3 was detected in T-LBL tissues compared with adjacent histologically normal tissues. Down-regulated level of MEG3 was also found in three T-LBL cell lines (CCRF-CEM, Jurkat and SUP-T1) compared with human T-cell line H9. The proliferation of T-LBL cells was inhibited and cell apoptosis rate was largely promoted when MEG3 was upregulated by a lentiviral vector. Further research revealed that microRNA (miRNA)-214 is a direct target of MEG3. The expression of miR-214 was increased in T-LBL tissues and cell lines compared with control groups. Besides, decreased level of miR-214 was elevated adding miR-214 mimic in SUP-T1 cells transfected with LncRNA-MEG3. Similarly, upregulated level of miR-214 was downregulated adding miR-214 inhibitor in SUP-T1 cells transfected with MEG3 siRNA. Luciferase activity assay further confirmed the targeting relationship between MEG3 and miR-214. Moreover, AIFM2 protein was predicted as a target of miR-214. The expression of AIFM2 was increased by MEG3 and was downregulated by miR-214 mimic. miRNA-214 reversed the effect of MEG3 on inhibiting cell proliferation and inducing cell apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in SUP-T1 cells. Moreover, relative expression of AIFM2 had a positive correlation with the expression of MEG3 and was negatively affected by miR-214. In vivo, MEG3 effectively suppressed tumor growth and the expression of proliferation markers Ki-67 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). Taken together, our research revealed that MEG3 worked as an anti-oncogene in T-LBL, and the MEG3-miR-214-AIFM2 pathway regulated the growth of T-LBL, providing potential prognosis markers as well as new potential targets for T-LBL treatment.

Infusion of basic fibroblast growth factor ameliorates acute graft versus host disease in mice after haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) on acute graft versus host disease (aGVHD) in mice after haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (haplo-HSCT). Haplo-HSCT mice model was established followed by dividing into three groups with 12 mice in each group, group 1 with infusion of 100g/kg bFGF, group 2 with infusion of 20 g/kg bFGF and control group without infusion. Clinical manifestation and survival time of mice after haplo-HSCT were monitored. On day 14 post transplantation, mice were sacrificed for pathology analysis of liver and the changes of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC). Compared to haplo-HSCT group, clinical manifestations of aGVHD in bFGF infusion group were significantly ameliorated. Furthermore, bFGF infusion also significantly prolonged the survival time of mice after transplantation (P<0.05) as demonstrated by Kaplan-Meier survival analysis with more infusion of bFGF, the longer survival of mice. Pathology analysis showed the severity of aGVHD in bFGF infusion group (1 and 2) was less severe than haplo-HSCT group with higher proliferation of bone marrow MSC in group 1. In conclusion, these studies demonstrated that infusion of bFGF ameliorated aGVHD in mice after haplo-HSCT.

Curcumin potentiates the anti-leukemia effects of imatinib by downregulation of the AKT/mTOR pathway and BCR/ABL gene expression in Ph+ acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL) is triggered by BCR/ABL and SRC family tyrosine kinases. They interact with each other and subsequently activate downstream growth-signaling pathways, including Raf/MEK/ERK, Akt/mTOR, and STAT5 pathways. Although imatinib is the standard treatment for Ph+ leukemia, response rate of Ph+ ALL to imatinib is low, relapse is frequent and quick. Studies have documented the potential anti-tumor activities of curcumin. However, whether curcumin can be used in the therapy for Ph+ ALL remains obscure. Here, we reported that curcumin induced apoptosis by inhibition of AKT/mTOR and ABL/STAT5 signaling, down-regulation of BCR/ABL expression, and induction of the BCL2/BAX imbalance. Curcumin exerted synergetic anti-leukemia effects with imatinib by inhibition of the imatinib-mediated overactivation of AKT/mTOR signaling and down-regulation of BCR/ABL gene expression. In primary samples from Ph+ ALL patients, curcumin inhibited cellular proliferation and down-regulated constitutive activation of growth-signaling pathways not only in newly diagnosed patients but also in imatinib-resistant patients. In Ph+ ALL mouse models, curcumin exhibited synergetic anti-leukemia effects with imatinib. These results demonstrated that curcumin might be a promising agent for Ph+ ALL patients.

Enhanced antitumor effect of combining chemotherapy with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes in mice with EBV-related non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-related non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) represents a major problem in hematological clinical studies due to its drug tolerance and refractoriness. EBV infection is a key factor driving the process of tumor growth. Immune therapy is an important biotherapeutic method of treating cancer, which is attracting increasing attention. We hypothesized that combining conventional chemotherapy with immune therapy in the treatment of EBV-related NHL may achieve better outcomes. First, we successfully cloned large numbers of EBV-specific T cells by immune stimulation ex vivo. Subsequently, the combined therapy was applied in a murine model of human EBV-related NHL. As expected, combined therapy inhibited tumor growth more effectively compared with monotherapy. In addition, we continuously tested the tumor-associated immune microenvironment and observed that the numbers of tumor-infiltrating cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and macrophages were elevated following combined therapy. These effects suggest that EBV-specific CTLs may indirectly promote an innate immune reaction in lymphoma by activating tumor-infiltrating macrophage proliferation. Our findings may provide a guide for the prospective treatment of EBV-related NHL.

Mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor rapamycin enhances anti-leukemia effect of imatinib on Ph+ acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells.

BCR-ABL fusion gene typically causes a type of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), known as Ph+ ALL. Although imatinib (IM) treatment induced high rates of complete response (CR), serious acute and late complications are frequent, whereas more vexatiously resistance to chemotherapy and clinical relapse develops. Therefore, the efficacy of treatment in Ph+ ALL is still to be determined. In this study, we focused our attention on the potential benefit of rapamycin (RAPA), an mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitor, in combination with IM on a Ph+ ALL cell line SUP-B15 and a primary Ph+ ALL sample in vitro. Analysis of cell proliferation showed that RAPA (50 nm) plus IM exerted good synergistic effect on Ph+ ALL cells. Notably, we found that IM treatment induced the abnormal activation of the components of mTOR signaling pathway and p-BCR-ABL, whereas RAPA potently eliminated this deleterious side effect induced by IM and might overcome the resistance to IM. The synergistic effect was also associated with the increase in autophagy, which seemed to have an opposite role with apoptosis in Ph+ ALL cells, and cell cycle arrest in G1 phase. Altogether, our results suggested that IM in combination with RAPA was more effective for Ph+ ALL cells than IM alone.

Antileukaemia effect of rapamycin alone or in combination with daunorubicin on Ph+ acute lymphoblastic leukaemia cell line.

The translocation (9;22) (q34;q11), known as the Philadelphia (Ph) chromosome and bcr-abl fusion gene, is the common cytogenetic abnormality and an unfavourable prognosis in adult acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). Although chemotherapeutic treatment produced high rates of complete response in approximately 70%-80% of newly diagnosed Ph+ ALL, the onset of resistance and clinical relapse is rapid. Therefore, the efficacy of treatment in Ph+ ALL is still to be determined. In this study, we aimed to assess the antileukemic activity of rapamycin (RAPA) (Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, MO, USA), a mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitor, alone and in combination with daunorubicin (DNR) (Pharmacia & Upjohn Company, Germany) in a Ph+ acute lymphoblastic cell line SUP-B15 and a primary Ph+ ALL sample in vitro. Here, we demonstrated that 50 nmol/L of RAPA significantly intensified the inhibition induced by DNR on both Ph+ ALL cell line and a primary Ph+ ALL sample. Notably, we reported that the consequence of DNR treatment induced the over expression of the components of mammalian target of rapamycin signalling pathway, whereas RAPA effectively eliminated this deleterious side effect of DNR, which might enhance DNR's ability to kill drug-resistant cancer. The synergistic effect was also associated with the increase in autophagy, blockage of cell cycle progression in the G1 phase. Altogether, our results suggest that DNR in combination with RAPA is more effective in the treatment of Ph+ ALL compared with DNR alone.