[Quantitative study on C/EBP zeta gene transcripts in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia using real-time quantitative PCR]

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the significance of quantitative detection of CCAAT/enhancer binding protein zeta (C/EBP zeta) transcripts in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML).

Methods: Real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RQ-PCR) assay was established and performed to measure the transcript level of C/EBP zeta in the bone marrow mononuclear cells from 76 patients with CML at different stages.

Results: C/EBP zeta transcripts were significantly decreased in CML patients in chronic phage, accelerated phage, and blastic crisis (median 2.5, 3.31, and 2.22, respectively), compared to that in normal controls (median 12.20). Further down-regulation of C/EBP zeta was observed in the patients resistant to interferon (median 1.56); however, its expression level returned to normal in the patients who obtained complete cytogenetic remission (median 15.43).

Conclusion: C/EBP zeta was down-regulated in CML patients, which might play a role in the leukemogenesis.