ABSTRACT
Expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) is characteristically altered in cancer, and they may play a role in cancer development and progression. The authors performed microarray and real-time quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analyses to determine the miRNA expression profile of primary small cell lung cancer. Here we show that at least 24 miRNAs are differentially expressed between normal lung and primary small cell lung cancer (SCLC) tumors. These include miR-301, miR-183/96/182, miR-126, and miR-223, which are microRNAs deregulated in other tumor types as well; and other miRNAs, such as miR-374 and miR-210, not previously reported in association with lung cancer. The aberrant miRNA profile of SCLC may offer new insights in the biology of this aggressive tumor, and could potentially provide novel diagnostic markers.
Subject(s)
Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic , MicroRNAs/genetics , Small Cell Lung Carcinoma/genetics , Adult , Gene Expression Profiling , Humans , Middle Aged , Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis , Small Cell Lung Carcinoma/pathology , SmokingABSTRACT
In relapsed/refractory childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) of the B-cell lineage rituximab, a monoclonal anti-CD20 antibody was used successfully in some cases. We report on a 15-year-old female with relapsed CD20-positive B-cell progenitor ALL treated with rituximab because of positive minimal residual disease signals after chemotherapy, as checked by flow cytometry and real time quantitative-PCR. Rituximab eliminated the CD20-positive subpopulation, but not the more immature leukemic cells. The patient died with fulminant aspergillosis before hematopoietic stem cell transplantation could be performed.
