Fingerprinting acute leukemia: DNA methylation profiling of B-acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Cancer Discov. 2012 Nov;2(11):976-8. doi: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-12-0435.

Abstract

In this issue of Cancer Discovery, Geng and colleagues report on their use of a combination of promoter cytosine methylation profiling with gene expression and ChIP sequencing to elucidate molecular signatures of adult B-acute lymphoblastic leukemia patient samples with BCR-ABL1, E2A-PBX1, and MLL rearrangements. The unique epigenetic and gene expression signatures of these clinically unfavorable B-ALL subtypes identify novel biomarkers and provide a strong rationale for repurposing existing therapies to treat these molecularly distinct diseases.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Comment

MeSH terms

  • Biomarkers, Tumor / genetics*
  • Humans
  • Precursor B-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / genetics*

Substances

  • Biomarkers, Tumor