Structure of the murine lactotransferrin gene is similar to the structure of other transferrin-encoding genes and shares a putative regulatory region with the murine myeloperoxidase gene.

The structure and nucleotide sequence of the murine lactotransferrin-encoding gene (LTF) deduced partly by direct sequencing of genomic clones in the lambda phage vector and partly by enzymatic amplification of genomic DNA segments primed with the oligodeoxyribonucleotide primers homologous to the cDNA sequence. The lambda phage clones contained the 5' half of the gene corresponding to the first eight exons and an incomplete ninth exon interrupted by eight introns. Genomic clones corresponding to the 3' half of the LTF gene could not be obtained on repeated attempts from two different mouse genomic libraries, suggesting the possible presence of unclonable sequences in this part of the gene. Hence, PCR was used to clone the rest of the gene. Four out of the presumed eight remaining introns were cloned along with the flanking exons using PCR. Comparison of the structure of the LTF gene with those of the two other known transferrin-encoding genes, human serum transferrin-encoding gene and chicken ovotransferrin-encoding gene reveals that all three genes have a very similar intron-exon distribution pattern. The hypothesis that the present-day transferrin-encoding genes have originated from duplication of a common ancestral gene is confirmed here at the gene level. An interesting finding is the identification of a region of shared nucleotides between the 5' flanking regions of the murine LTF and myeloperoxidase-encoding genes, the two genes expressed specifically in neutrophilic granulocytes.

Detection of minimal disease in hematopoietic malignancies of the B-cell lineage by using third-complementarity-determining region (CDR-III)-specific probes.

Approximately 80% of hematopoietic malignancies of the B-cell lineage carry only one or two immunoglobulin heavy chain gene rearrangements indicating their clonal origin. These rearrangements due to the recombination of various variable, diversity, and joining regions of the heavy-chain gene segments during B-cell commitment result in a region called complementarity-determining region III (CDR-III). This region, which encompasses the diversity region of the heavy-chain segment, because of extensive somatic mutations, provides a DNA-encoded signature specific for each B-cell clone. CDR-III sequences were obtained from DNA of pre-B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia by using suitable primers and the polymerase chain reaction. The sequences were used to generate diagnostic probes that hybridized only to the amplified CDR-III of leukemic cells from which the sequences were derived. With these probes, leukemic cells could be detected when diluted 1:10,000 with other cells. By cloning the amplified CDR-III into recombinant libraries residual leukemic cells were accurately quantitated in bone-marrow samples from repeated relapses and remissions in one case of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. During a clinical remission lasting greater than 7 mo, malignant cells were present in marrow at greater than 1 per 1000 cells. These findings indicate that custom-made diagnostic probes will be useful in accurate quantitation of malignant cells in acute lymphoblastic leukemia patients in clinical remission and will allow investigation of the biological significance of low or high numbers of residual leukemic cells in evolution of that disease.

Point mutations in both transforming and non-transforming codons of the N-ras proto-oncogene of Ph+ leukemias.

The distribution and frequency of point mutations in the first and second coding exons of the N-ras proto-oncogene was examined in 6 cases of Philadelphia positive (Ph+) hemopoietic malignancies. To increase the detection sensitivity of the mutations and to estimate more accurately the frequency of abnormal alleles in the hemopoietic cell population, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)/shotgun cloning/double stranded DNA sequencing method was used. Mutations activating the ras oncogenes involving codon 61 were observed in 5 out of 6 cases; in one of these cases (CML3), mutation at codon 61 involved a two base transition. Mutations involving codon 59 were also observed in one case (CML1). In longitudinal studies of 3 cases of chronic myelogenous leukemia samples obtained at the time of initial diagnosis and 5 to 7 years later, a multiplicity of mutations were detected at the time of initial diagnosis prior to any therapy. In one case (CML3), a mutation in codon 61 detected at diagnosis was still present 5 years later, in a second case (CML1) a mutation in codon 61 appeared during the course of the disease and persisted for at least one year, and in the third case (CML2) a mutation in codon 61 was present at diagnosis but absent 5 years later. In one instance (CML1) a mutation in codon 59 was present at the time of initial diagnosis but was not detectable in later samples. Several other point mutations leading to aminoacid changes were scattered predominately through the second exon but were not consistently detected in longitudinal studies on cells from the same patient. The data suggest that there is considerable genetic instability in the 2nd exon of N-ras in the myeloid leukemias but in every case a small subset of cells contains the mutations and these cells do not have a proliferative advantage.