Targeting WEE1 kinase as a p53-independent therapeutic strategy in high-risk and relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

BACKGROUND: Outcomes for patients with relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) are poor and there is a need for novel therapies to improve outcomes. Targeted inhibition of WEE1 with small-molecule inhibitor adavosertib (AZD1775) has emerged as a therapeutic strategy to sensitize cancer cells to DNA-damaging chemotherapeutics, particularly in the context of TP53-mutated tumors. However, WEE1 inhibition as a potential therapeutic strategy for patients with high-risk and relapsed ALL, including those with TP53 mutations, has not been definitively evaluated. METHODS: Anti-leukemic effects of adavosertib were investigated using a relapsed TP53 isogenic cell model system, primary patient, and patient-derived ALL samples (n = 27) in an ex vivo co-culture model system with bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells. Combination effects with drugs currently used for relapsed ALL were quantified by Excess over Bliss analyses. Investigations for alterations of cell cycle and apoptosis as well as related proteins were examined by flow cytometry and Western blot, respectively. RESULTS: Our study demonstrates the potent anti-leukemic activity of the clinically advanced WEE1 inhibitor adavosertib in a large majority (n = 18/27) of high-risk and relapsed ALL specimens at lower than clinically attainable concentrations, independent of TP53 mutation status. We show that treatment with adavosertib results in S-phase disruption even in the absence of DNA-damaging agents and that premature mitotic entry is not a prerequisite for its anti-leukemic effects. We further demonstrate that WEE1 inhibition additively and synergistically enhances the anti-leukemic effects of multiple conventional chemotherapeutics used in the relapsed ALL treatment setting. Particularly, we demonstrate the highly synergistic and cytotoxic combination of adavosertib with the nucleoside analog cytarabine and provide mechanistic insights into the combinational activity, showing preferential engagement of apoptotic cell death over cell cycle arrest. Our findings strongly support in vivo interrogation of adavosertib with cytarabine in xenograft models of relapsed and high-risk ALL. CONCLUSIONS: Together, our data emphasize the functional importance of WEE1 in relapsed ALL cells and show WEE1 as a promising p53-independent therapeutic target for the improved treatment of high-risk and relapsed ALL.

Glucocorticoids and selumetinib are highly synergistic in RAS pathway-mutated childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia through upregulation of BIM.

New drugs are needed for the treatment of relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia and preclinical evaluation of the MEK inhibitor, selumetinib, has shown that this drug has excellent activity in those leukemias with RAS pathway mutations. The proapoptotic protein, BIM is pivotal in the induction of cell death by both selumetinib and glucocorticoids, suggesting the potential for synergy. Thus, combination indices for dexamethasone and selumetinib were determined in RAS pathway-mutated acute lymphoblastic leukemia primagraft cells in vitro and were indicative of strong synergism (combination index <0.2; n=5). Associated pharmacodynamic assays were consistent with the hypothesis that the drug combination enhanced BIM upregulation over that achieved by a single drug alone. Dosing of dexamethasone and selumetinib singly and in combination in mice engrafted with primary-derived RAS pathway-mutated leukemia cells resulted in a marked reduction in spleen size which was significantly greater with the drug combination. Assessment of the central nervous system leukemia burden showed a significant reduction in the drug-treated mice, with no detectable leukemia in those treated with the drug combination. These data suggest that a selumetinib-dexamethasone combination may be highly effective in RAS pathway-mutated acute lymphoblastic leukemia. An international phase I/II clinical trial of dexamethasone and selumetinib (Seludex trial) is underway in children with multiply relapsed/refractory disease.

The ability to cross the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier is a generic property of acute lymphoblastic leukemia blasts.

Prevention of central nervous system (CNS) relapse is critical for cure of childhood B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL). Despite this, mechanisms of CNS infiltration are poorly understood, and the timing, frequency, and properties of BCP-ALL blasts entering the CNS compartment are unknown. We investigated the CNS-engrafting potential of BCP-ALL cells xenotransplanted into immunodeficient NOD.Cg- ITALIC! Prkdc (ITALIC! scid) ITALIC! Il2rg (ITALIC! tm1Wjl)/SzJ mice. CNS engraftment was seen in 23 of 29 diagnostic samples (79%): 2 of 2 from patients with overt CNS disease and 21 of 27 from patients thought to be CNS negative by diagnostic lumbar puncture. Histologic findings mimic human pathology and demonstrate that leukemic cells transit the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier situated close to the dural sinuses, the site of recently discovered CNS lymphatics. Retrieval of blasts from the CNS showed no evidence for chemokine receptor-mediated selective trafficking. The high frequency of infiltration and lack of selective trafficking led us to postulate that CNS tropism is a generic property of leukemic cells. To test this, we performed serial dilution experiments which showed CNS engraftment in 5 of 6 mice after transplant of as few as 10 leukemic cells. Clonal tracking techniques confirmed the polyclonal nature of CNS-infiltrating cells, with multiple clones engrafting in both the CNS and periphery. Overall, these findings suggest that subclinical seeding of the CNS is likely to be present in most BCP-ALL patients at original diagnosis, and efforts to prevent CNS relapse should concentrate on effective eradication of disease from this site rather than targeting entry mechanisms.

Integration of genetic and clinical risk factors improves prognostication in relapsed childhood B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Somatic genetic abnormalities are initiators and drivers of disease and have proven clinical utility at initial diagnosis. However, the genetic landscape and its clinical utility at relapse are less well understood and have not been studied comprehensively. We analyzed cytogenetic data from 427 children with relapsed B-cell precursor ALL treated on the international trial, ALLR3. Also we screened 238 patients with a marrow relapse for selected copy number alterations (CNAs) and mutations. Cytogenetic risk groups were predictive of outcome postrelapse and survival rates at 5 years for patients with good, intermediate-, and high-risk cytogenetics were 68%, 47%, and 26%, respectively (P < .001). TP53 alterations and NR3C1/BTG1 deletions were associated with a higher risk of progression: hazard ratio 2.36 (95% confidence interval, 1.51-3.70, P < .001) and 2.15 (1.32-3.48, P = .002). NRAS mutations were associated with an increased risk of progression among standard-risk patients with high hyperdiploidy: 3.17 (1.15-8.71, P = .026). Patients classified clinically as standard and high risk had distinct genetic profiles. The outcome of clinical standard-risk patients with high-risk cytogenetics was equivalent to clinical high-risk patients. Screening patients at relapse for key genetic abnormalities will enable the integration of genetic and clinical risk factors to improve patient stratification and outcome. This study is registered at www.clinicaltrials.org as #ISCRTN45724312.

The influence of glucocorticoid receptor single nucleotide polymorphisms on outcome after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) remains the only cure for most haematological malignancies, however, the mortality rate remains high. Complications after HSCT include relapse, graft versus host disease (GvHD), graft rejection and infection. Over the last few years several groups, have demonstrated that non-HLA gene polymorphisms can be predictive of outcome after HSCT. Since the glucocorticoid cortisol is pivotal in the regulation of the immune system, we decided to examine single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs; rs6198, rs33388 and rs33389) within the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and correlate with HSCT outcome. The training set consisted of patients (n = 458) who underwent HSCT for acute leukaemia between 1983 and 2005. In the recipients, the absence of the ACT haplotype and absence of the T allele of rs33388 were associated with decreased OS and the absence of the ACT haplotype, the absence of the T allele of rs33388 and the presence of the ATA haplotype were associated with increased risk of relapse. In addition, the presence of the ACT haplotype in the recipient showed a trend to be associated with increased risk of chronic graft versus host disease (cGvHD). The patients in this cohort received mainly myeloablative conditioning (n = 327). The SNPs in the glucocorticoid receptor were then investigated in a validation set (n = 251) of HSCT patients transplanted for acute leukaemia from 2006. This cohort contained significantly more patients that had received reduced intensity conditioning (RIC). Some of the results could be validated in these patients. However, contrary to the training set, the absence of the haplotype ACT in the donor in this cohort was associated with increased risk of cGvHD. Differences in the conditioning were shown to influence the results. These results are the first to associate GR SNPs with HSCT outcome and demonstrate the inherent problems of replicating SNP association studies in HSCT, due to different pre-transplant regimens.

CREBBP knockdown enhances RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK signaling in Ras pathway mutated acute lymphoblastic leukemia but does not modulate chemotherapeutic response.

Relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia is the most common cause of cancer-related mortality in young people and new therapeutic strategies are needed to improve outcome. Recent studies have shown that heterozygous inactivating mutations in the histone acetyl transferase, CREBBP, are particularly frequent in relapsed childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia and associated with a hyperdiploid karyotype and KRAS mutations. To study the functional impact of CREBBP haploinsufficiency in acute lymphoblastic leukemia, RNA interference was used to knock down expression of CREBBP in acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell lines and various primagraft acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells. We demonstrate that attenuation of CREBBP results in reduced acetylation of histone 3 lysine 18, but has no significant impact on cAMP-dependent target gene expression. Impaired induction of glucocorticoid receptor targets was only seen in 1 of 4 CREBBP knockdown models, and there was no significant difference in glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis, sensitivity to other acute lymphoblastic leukemia chemotherapeutics or histone deacetylase inhibitors. Importantly, we show that CREBBP directly acetylates KRAS and that CREBBP knockdown enhances signaling of the RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK pathway in Ras pathway mutated acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells, which are still sensitive to MEK inhibitors. Thus, CREBBP mutations might assist in enhancing oncogenic RAS signaling in acute lymphoblastic leukemia but do not alter response to MEK inhibitors.

Towards an understanding of the biology and targeted treatment of paediatric relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is the most common childhood cancer and for those children who relapse, prognosis is poor and new therapeutic strategies are needed. Recurrent pathways implicated in relapse include RAS, JAK STAT, cell cycle, epigenetic regulation, B cell development, glucocorticoid response, nucleotide metabolism and DNA repair. Targeting these pathways is a rational therapeutic strategy and may deliver novel, targeted therapies into the clinic. Relapse often stems from a minor clone present at diagnosis and thus analysis of persisting leukaemia during upfront therapy may allow targeted drug intervention to prevent relapse.

Personalization of dexamethasone therapy in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Dexamethasone is a key component in the treatment of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). Despite playing a key role in the improved survival of ALL over several decades, intensification of dexamethasone therapy has also contributed to the increased toxicity associated with treatment, which is now seen to be at unacceptable levels given the favourable disease prognosis. Therefore the focus for treatment is now shifting towards reducing toxicity whilst maintaining current survival rates. As approximately 50% of patients were successfully treated on less intensive protocols of the 1980s, it has been questioned whether therapy intensification is necessary in all patients. Furthermore, there remains a subset of children who are still not cured of their disease. New strategies are therefore needed to identify patients who could benefit from dose reduction or intensification. However, adjusting a potentially life threatening therapy is a challenging task, particularly given the heterogeneous nature of ALL. This review focuses on the potential for patient stratification based on our current knowledge of dexamethasone pharmacokinetics, pharmacogenetics and the action of dexamethasone at the cellular level. A carefully designed, combined approach is needed if we are to achieve the aim of improved personalization of dexamethasone therapy for future patients.

Quantitative proteomic analysis reveals maturation as a mechanism underlying glucocorticoid resistance in B lineage ALL and re-sensitization by JNK inhibition.

Glucocorticoid (GC) resistance is a continuing clinical problem in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. A proteomic approach was used to compare profiles of the B-lineage ALL GC-sensitive cell line, PreB 697, and its GC-resistant sub-line, R3F9, pre- and post-dexamethasone exposure. PAX5, a transcription factor critical to B-cell development was differentially regulated in the PreB 697 compared to the R3F9 cell line in response to GC. PAX5 basal protein expression was less in R3F9 compared to its GC-sensitive parent and confirmed to be lower in other GC-resistant sub-lines of Pre B 697 and was associated with a decreased expression of the PAX5 transcriptional target, CD19. Gene set enrichment analysis showed that increasing GC-resistance was associated with differentiation from preB-II to an immature B-lymphocyte stage. GC-resistant sub-lines were shown to have higher levels of phosphorylated JNK compared to the parent line and JNK inhibition caused re-sensitization to GC. Exploiting this maturation may be key to overcoming GC resistance and targeting signalling pathways linked to the maturation state, such as JNK, may be a novel approach.

Combination p53 activation and BCL-xL/BCL-2 inhibition as a therapeutic strategy in high-risk and relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Due to the rarity of TP53 mutations in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), p53 re-activation by antagonism of the p53-MDM2 interaction represents a potential therapeutic strategy for the majority of ALL. Here, we demonstrate the potent antileukemic activity of the MDM2 antagonist idasanutlin in high-risk and relapsed ex vivo coculture models of TP53 wildtype ALL (n = 40). Insufficient clinical responses to monotherapy MDM2 inhibitors in other cancers prompted us to explore optimal drugs for combination therapy. Utilizing high-throughput combination screening of 1971 FDA-approved and clinically advanced compounds, we identified BCL-xL/BCL-2 inhibitor navitoclax as the most promising idasanutlin combination partner. The idasanutlin-navitoclax combination was synergistically lethal to prognostically-poor, primary-derived and primary patient blasts in ex vivo coculture, and reduced leukemia burden in two very high-risk ALL xenograft models at drug concentrations safely attained in patients; in fact, the navitoclax plasma concentrations were equivalent to those attained in contemporary "low-dose" navitoclax clinical trials. We demonstrate a preferential engagement of cell death over G1 cell cycle arrest, mechanistically implicating MCL-1-binding pro-apoptotic sensitizer NOXA. The proposed combination of two clinical-stage compounds independently under clinical evaluation for ALL is of high clinical relevance and warrants consideration for the treatment of patients with high-risk and relapsed ALL.

MHC variation and risk of childhood B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

A role for specific human leukocyte antigen (HLA) variants in the etiology of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has been extensively studied over the last 30 years, but no unambiguous association has been identified. To comprehensively study the relationship between genetic variation within the 4.5 Mb major histocompatibility complex genomic region and precursor B-cell (BCP) ALL risk, we analyzed 1075 observed and 8176 imputed single nucleotide polymorphisms and their related haplotypes in 824 BCP-ALL cases and 4737 controls. Using these genotypes we also imputed both common and rare alleles at class I (HLA-A, HLA-B, and HLA-C) and class II (HLA-DRB1, HLA-DQA1, and HLA-DQB1) HLA loci. Overall, we found no statistically significant association between variants and BCP-ALL risk. We conclude that major histocompatibility complex-defined variation in immune-mediated response is unlikely to be a major risk factor for BCP-ALL.

Genome-wide homozygosity signatures and childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia risk.

Recent studies have reported that regions of homozygosity (ROH) in the genome are detectable in outbred populations and can be associated with an increased risk of malignancy. To examine whether homozygosity is associated with an increased risk of developing childhood B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL), we analyzed 824 ALL cases and 2398 controls genotyped for 292 200 tagging SNPs. Across the genome, cumulative distribution of ROH was not significantly different between cases and controls. Four common ROH at 10p11.2-10q11.21, 1p31.1, 19p13.2-3, and 20q11.1-23 were, however, associated with ALL risk at P less than .01 (including 1 ROH to which the erythropoietin receptor [EPOR] gene maps, P = .005) but were nonsignificant after adjusting for multiple testing. Our findings make it unlikely that levels of measured homozygosity, caused by autozygosity, uniparental isodisomy, or hemizygosity, play a major role in defining BCP-ALL risk in predominantly outbred populations.

A comprehensive analysis of the CDKN2A gene in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia reveals genomic deletion, copy number neutral loss of heterozygosity, and association with specific cytogenetic subgroups.

Inactivation of the tumor suppressor gene, CDKN2A, can occur by deletion, methylation, or mutation. We assessed the principal mode of inactivation in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and frequency in biologically relevant subgroups. Mutation or methylation was rare, whereas genomic deletion occurred in 21% of B-cell precursor ALL and 50% of T-ALL patients. Single nucleotide polymorphism arrays revealed copy number neutral (CNN) loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in 8% of patients. Array-based comparative genomic hybridization demonstrated that the mean size of deletions was 14.8 Mb and biallelic deletions composed a large and small deletion (mean sizes, 23.3 Mb and 1.4 Mb). Among 86 patients, only 2 small deletions were below the resolution of detection by fluorescence in situ hybridization. Patients with high hyperdiploidy, ETV6-RUNX1, or 11q23/MLL rearrangements had low rates of deletion (11%, 15%, 13%), whereas patients with t(9;22), t(1;19), TLX3, or TLX1 rearrangements had higher frequencies (61%, 42%, 78%, and 89%). In conclusion, CDKN2A deletion is a significant secondary abnormality in childhood ALL strongly correlated with phenotype and genotype. The variation in the incidence of CDKN2A deletions by cytogenetic subgroup may explain its inconsistent association with outcome. CNN LOH without apparent CDKN2A inactivation suggests the presence of other relevant genes in this region.

MMSET deregulation affects cell cycle progression and adhesion regulons in t(4;14) myeloma plasma cells.

BACKGROUND: The recurrent immunoglobulin translocation, t(4;14)(p16;q32) occurs in 15% of multiple myeloma patients and is associated with poor prognosis, through an unknown mechanism. The t(4;14) up-regulates fibroblast growth factor receptor 3 (FGFR3) and multiple myeloma SET domain (MMSET) genes. The involvement of MMSET in the pathogenesis of t(4;14) multiple myeloma and the mechanism or genes deregulated by MMSET upregulation are still unclear. DESIGN AND METHODS: The expression of MMSET was analyzed using a novel antibody. The involvement of MMSET in t(4;14) myelomagenesis was assessed by small interfering RNA mediated knockdown combined with several biological assays. In addition, the differential gene expression of MMSET-induced knockdown was analyzed with expression microarrays. MMSET gene targets in primary patient material was analyzed by expression microarrays. RESULTS: We found that MMSET isoforms are expressed in multiple myeloma cell lines, being exclusively up-regulated in t(4;14)-positive cells. Suppression of MMSET expression affected cell proliferation by both decreasing cell viability and cell cycle progression of cells with the t(4;14) translocation. These findings were associated with reduced expression of genes involved in the regulation of cell cycle progression (e.g. CCND2, CCNG1, BRCA1, AURKA and CHEK1), apoptosis (CASP1, CASP4 and FOXO3A) and cell adhesion (ADAM9 and DSG2). Furthermore, we identified genes involved in the latter processes that were differentially expressed in t(4;14) multiple myeloma patient samples. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, dysregulation of MMSET affects the expression of several genes involved in the regulation of cell cycle progression, cell adhesion and survival.

Outcomes of patients with childhood B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia with late bone marrow relapses: long-term follow-up of the ALLR3 open-label randomised trial.

BACKGROUND: The ALLR3 trial investigated outcomes of children with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia who had late bone marrow relapses. We analysed long-term follow-up outcomes of these patients. METHODS: ALLR3 was an open-label randomised clinical trial that recruited children aged 1-18 years with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia who had late bone marrow relapses. Eligible patients were recruited from centres in Australia, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and the UK. Patients were randomly assigned from Jan 31, 2003, to Dec 31, 2007, and the trial closed to recruitment on Oct 31, 2013. Randomly assigned patients were allocated to receive either idarubicin or mitoxantrone in induction by stratified concealed randomisation; after randomisation stopped in Dec 31, 2007, all patients were allocated to receive mitoxantrone. After three blocks of therapy, patients with high minimal residual disease (≥10-4 cells) at the end of induction were allocated to undergo allogeneic stem-cell transplantation and those with low minimal residual disease (<10-4 cells) at the end of induction were allocated to receive chemotherapy. Minimal residual disease level was measured by real-time quantitative PCR analysis of immunoglobulin and T-cell receptor gene rearrangements. The primary endpoint of the original ALLR3 clinical trial was progression-free survival of randomly assigned patients. The primary endpoint of this long-term follow-up analysis was progression-free survival of patients with late bone marrow relapses stratified by minimal residual disease level. Outcomes were correlated with age, site, time to recurrence, and genetic subtypes, and analysed by both intention to treat and actual treatment received. This trial is registered on the ISRCTN registry, number ISRCTN45724312, and on ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT00967057. FINDINGS: Between Feb 2, 2003, and Oct 28, 2013, 228 patients with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia and late bone marrow relapses were treated. After a median follow-up of 84 months (IQR 48-109), progression-free survival of all randomly assigned patients was 60% (95% CI 54-70). 220 patients achieved second complete remission, and minimal residual disease was evaluable in 192 (87%). 110 patients with late bone marrow relapses and high minimal residual disease at the end of induction were allocated to undergo stem-cell transplantation, and 82 patients with low minimal residual disease at the end of induction were allocated to receive chemotherapy. In the patients allocated to undergo stem-cell transplantation, four relapses and three deaths were reported before the procedure, and 11 patients were not transplanted. Of the 92 patients transplanted, 58 (63%) remained in second complete remission, 13 (14%) died of complications, and 21 (23%) relapsed after stem-cell transplantation. In patients allocated to receive chemotherapy, one early treatment-related death was reported and 11 patients were transplanted. Of the 70 patients who continued on chemotherapy, 49 (70%) remained in second complete remission, two (3%) died of complications, and 19 (27%) relapsed. Progression-free survival at 5 years was 56% (95% CI 46-65) in those with high minimal residual disease and 72% (60-81) in patients with low minimal residual disease (p=0·0078). Treatment-related serious adverse events were not analysed in the long-term follow-up. INTERPRETATION: Patients with B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia with late bone marrow relapses and low minimal residual disease at end of induction had favourable outcomes with chemotherapy without undergoing stem-cell transplantation. Patients with high minimal residual disease benefited from stem-cell transplantation, and targeted therapies might offer further improvements in outcomes for these patients. FUNDING: Bloodwise (Formerly Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research) UK, Cancer Research UK, Sporting Chance Cancer Foundation, National Health and Medical Research Council Australia, KindreneKankervrij Netherlands, European Union Seventh Framework Programme, India Alliance Wellcome DBT Margdarshi Fellowship.

Impact of dose and duration of therapy on dexamethasone pharmacokinetics in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia-a report from the UKALL 2011 trial.

INTRODUCTION: The use of dexamethasone in acute lymphoblastic leukaemia therapy contributes to short- and long-term toxicities. The UKALL 2011 randomised trial investigated whether a more intense dexamethasone dose (10 mg/m2/d x 14d, short vs 6 mg/m2/d x 28d, standard) would lead to a more rapid cytoreduction and reduced adverse effects associated with longer durations of steroids in induction. The impact of dose and duration on dexamethasone pharmacokinetics was investigated. METHODS: Blood samples were obtained on one of the first three and last three days of induction dexamethasone dosing at time points up to 8 h after oral administration. Plasma dexamethasone levels were quantified in 1084 plasma samples obtained from 174 children and a population pharmacokinetic model developed. RESULTS: Drug exposure varied significantly between patients, with a >12-fold variation in AUC0-12h values and a marked overlap in dexamethasone exposures between dose levels. Intuitively, AUC0-12h was significantly higher with short dosing (10 mg/m2/d), but cumulative exposure was significantly higher with standard dosing over 28 days, after a higher cumulative dose. Concomitant rasburicase administration was associated with a 60% higher dexamethasone clearance. Day 8 bone marrow response was comparable between dosing arms, but those with <5% blast count exhibited a greater mean dexamethasone exposure than those with >5%. No statistical differences were observed between arms in terms of steroid-related toxicity or minimal residual disease at the end of induction. CONCLUSION: The potential significance of dexamethasone AUC0-12h on early response and higher cumulative exposure on the standard arm suggest that duration of therapy and exposure may be more important factors than absolute dose from a clinical pharmacology perspective.

SH2B3 inactivation through CN-LOH 12q is uniquely associated with B-cell precursor ALL with iAMP21 or other chromosome 21 gain.

In more than 30% of B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (B-ALL), chromosome 21 sequence is overrepresented through aneuploidy or structural rearrangements, exemplified by intrachromosomal amplification of chromosome 21 (iAMP21). Although frequent, the mechanisms by which these abnormalities promote B-ALL remain obscure. Intriguingly, we found copy number neutral loss of heterozygosity (CN-LOH) of 12q was recurrent in iAMP21-ALL, but never observed in B-ALL without some form of chromosome 21 gain. As a consequence of CN-LOH 12q, mutations or deletions of the adaptor protein, SH2B3, were converted to homozygosity. In patients without CN-LOH 12q, bi-allelic abnormalities of SH2B3 occurred, but only in iAMP21-ALL, giving an overall incidence of 18% in this sub-type. Review of published data confirmed a tight association between overrepresentation of chromosome 21 and both CN-LOH 12q and SH2B3 abnormalities in B-ALL. Despite relatively small patient numbers, preliminary analysis linked 12q abnormalities to poor outcome in iAMP21-ALL (p = 0.03). Homology modelling of a leukaemia-associated SH2 domain mutation and in vitro analysis of patient-derived xenograft cells implicated the JAK/STAT pathway as one likely target for SH2B3 tumour suppressor activity in iAMP21-ALL.

A common intron 2 polymorphism of the glucocorticoid receptor gene is associated with insulin resistance in men.

OBJECTIVE: Clinical similarities between the metabolic syndrome and Cushing's syndrome have led to speculation of genetic association between them. The Bcl1 polymorphism in intron 2 of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene has been associated with insulin resistance/hyperinsulinaemia. Our objective was to test the association of rs2918419, a T-->C single nucleotide change in intron 2 downstream of the Bcl1 locus, with components of the metabolic syndrome and its interaction with the Bcl1 locus. DESIGN AND METHODS: We genotyped a subsample of 325 White subjects (116 men) in the Newcastle Heart Project (NHP), a population-based study in north-east England. Gender-specific statistical analysis by stepwise backward multiple regression was performed to test the association of allele status with adiposity, glucose and insulin responses to oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), fasting lipids and blood pressure. RESULTS: Minor allele frequency was 0.14 for rs2918419 and 0.39 for the Bcl1 polymorphism. rs2918419 was associated with higher fasting insulin concentration and insulin resistance in men but not in women. Contrary to earlier studies, the Bcl1 polymorphism on its own was not associated with insulin resistance/hyperinsulinaemia in either gender. Subjects carrying variant rs2918419 alleles also had variant alleles at the Bcl1 locus. In men, but not women, Bcl1 variant alleles on a background of rs2918419 wild-type alleles associated with lower fasting insulin compared to wild-type alleles at both loci or variant alleles at both loci. CONCLUSIONS: We report that rs2918419 was linked with hyperinsulinaemia and insulin resistance in men. Carrying Bcl1 variant alleles without rs2918419 was not associated with hyperinsulinaemia/insulin resistance. Previous reports of the association of Bcl1 polymorphism with obesity-related characteristics may reflect linkage disequilibrium with rs2918419.

Glucocorticoid resistance in two key models of acute lymphoblastic leukemia occurs at the level of the glucocorticoid receptor.

Glucocorticoids (GCs) specifically induce apoptosis in malignant lymphoblasts and are thus pivotal in the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). However, GC-resistance is a therapeutic problem with an unclear molecular mechanism. We generated approximately 70 GC-resistant sublines from a GC-sensitive B- and a T-ALL cell line and investigated their mechanisms of resistance. In response to GCs, all GC-resistant subclones analyzed by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) showed a deficient up-regulation of the GC-receptor (GR) and its downstream target, GC-induced leucine zipper. This deficiency in GR up-regulation was confirmed by Western blotting and on retroviral overexpression of GR in resistant subclones GC-sensitivity was restored. All GC-resistant subclones were screened for GR mutations using denaturing high-pressure liquid chromatography (DHPLC), DNA-fingerprinting, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Among the identified mutations were some previously not associated with GC resistance: A484D, P515H, L756N, Y663H, L680P, and R714W. This approach revealed three genotypes, complete loss of functional GR in the mismatch repair deficient T-ALL model, apparently normal GR genes in B-ALLs, and heterozygosity in both. In the first genotype, deficiency in GR up-regulation was fully explained by mutational events, in the second by a putative regulatory defect, and in the third by a combination thereof. In all instances, GC-resistance occurred at the level of the GR in both models.