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Patricia Buffler, Ph.D. and Martyn Smith, Ph.D. Background: There are different types of childhood leukemia based on the origin of the malignancy; the bone marrow, lymphoid tissue, or mixed origin. Classification provides important information to the clinician treating children with leukemia, but the process is time consuming, expensive and requires additional trained personnel to make the correct determination. With advances in genomics, it is now possible to subclassify childhood leukemias with microarray technology. Distinct patterns of gene expression allow for the differentiation between acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Recent reports suggest that proteome analysis, the determination of all the proteins present in a cell, tissue or organism at any one time, may yield similar results and further aide the diagnostic process along with increasing the precision of studies to detect links between leukemia subtypes and environmental exposures. Advance: In a recent publication, NIEHS supported researchers at the School of Public Health of the University of California Berkeley describe their success in applying standard proteomics techniques to analyze four childhood leukemia cell lines. The technique known as SELDI-TOF MS detected proteomic differences between ALL and AML. Implications: The results suggest that proteome analysis can be useful in determining the source of childhood leukemia as well as improving the precision of the diagnosis. The correct diagnosis is critical in determining the best treatment regimen for children with leukemia. The findings may also lead to the discovery of biomarkers and/or proteins involved in the development of leukemia potentially leading to better drugs to treat the disease. Citation: Hegedus CM, Gunn L, Skibola CF, Zhang L, Shiao R, Fu S, Dalmasso EA, Metayer C, Dahl GV, Buffler PA, Smith MT. Proteomic analysis of childhood leukemia. Leukemia. 2005 Oct;19(10):1713-1718. |
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