Characterization of lymphoid cells by two-dimensional mini gel electrophoresis of proteins

From genome to proteome: Looking beyond DNA and RNA in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) remains the most common leukemia in the Western world. Whilst its disease course is extremely heterogeneous (ranging from indolent to aggressive), current methods are unable to accurately predict the clinical journey of each patient. There is clearly a pressing need for both improved prognostication and treatment options for patients with this disease. Whilst molecular studies have analyzed both genetic mutations and gene expression profiles of these malignant B-cells, and as a result have shed light on the pathogenesis of CLL, proteomic studies have been largely overlooked to date. This review summarizes our current knowledge of the proteomics of CLL, and discusses some of the issues in CLL proteomic research, such as reproducibility and data interpretation. In addition, we look ahead to how proteomics may significantly help in the development of a successful treatment for this currently incurable disease.

Protein expression profiling of CLL B cells using replicate off-line strong cation exchange chromatography and LC–MS/MS

In this study we use replicate 2D-LC-MS/MS analyses of crude membranes from B cells derived from a patient with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) to examine the protein expression profile of CLL B cells. Protein identifications made by replicate 2D-LC-MS/MS analysis of tryptic peptides from detergent solubilized B cell membrane proteins, as well as replicate LC-MS/MS analysis of single off-line strong cation exchange chromatography (SCX) fractions, were analyzed. We show that despite the variance in SCX, capillary LC, and the data-dependent selection of precursor ions, an overlap of 64% between proteins identified in replicate runs was achieved for this system.

Serum antibodies to a normal cellular protein (P-65) in patients with Hodgkin's disease

Samples from the L-428 Hodgkin's cell line and from several other lymphoma cell lines were lysed and the soluble proteins were subjected to one- or two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. The separated proteins were transferred to nitrocellulose by the Western Blot technique; antibody reactivity was detected by an immunoperoxidase reaction. Of 152 sera from patients with Hodgkin's disease (HD) 26 (17%) reacted with protein P-65 whereas in the control group, consisting of 35 healthy persons and 20 patients with other malignant diseases only 1 serum was reactive. Thus, the difference between the two groups was highly significant (P less than 0.01). These antibodies were most common in stage III HD. Splenectomy had no effect on the incidence of these antibodies, and there seemed to be no correlation with B-symptoms or with the histological subtype.

Immunoglobulin light chains in chronic lymphocytic leukemia and related diseases

The combination of two-dimensional mini gel electrophoresis with the 'western blot' technique proves to be a powerful tool in characterizing lymphoid cells. By testing for kappa and lambda immunoglobulin light chains we were able to differentiate between mono-, oligo-, and polyclonal B-cell diseases. The distribution of the lambda isotypes of 24 cases with chronic lymphocytic B-cell leukemia (B-CLL) tested was not random when compared to the distribution of the lambda light chains in B-lymphocytes of normal persons. This might implicate a genetic link between the lambda loci (chromosome 22) and the development of the lambda-CLL.