Outcome of Chronic Myeloid Leukemia-Chronic Phase Patients Treated With Imatinib: A Local Experience

Ultrasensitive detection of imatinib in human serum using a gold-based paper sensor

Imatinib is the tyrosine kinase inhibitor of choice for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia and gastrointestinal stromal tumors. However, imatinib has drawbacks such as drug resistance and significant differences in pharmacokinetics within patients. Therefore, a colloidal gold-based immunochromatographic assay (CG-IA) was developed for measuring and monitoring imatinib in human serum. An imatinib derivative containing carboxyl groups was used for the synthesis of the immunogen, and 4-(4-methyl-1-piperazinylmethyl) benzoic acid was selected as the hapten for the heterologous coating antigen. Next, a highly sensitive and specific monoclonal antibody (mAb), 2F7 was screened for the construction of a CG-IA, with an IC50 value of 0.091 ng/mL. For the qualification of imatinib in human serum, the visual limit of detection (vLOD) and cut-off values of the CG-IA were 2 and 20 ng/mL, respectively. For quantitative detection, the calculated LOD value of the CG-IA was 0.068 ng/mL, with a linearity range of 1.004 and 23.087 ng/mL. The recovery rate of spiked serum samples was between 88.24 % and 104.75 %. In addition, the concentration of imatinib in the serum samples from 10 patients was detected by CG-IA and revealed a good correlation with those from LC-MS/MS. These results indicated that the developed gold-based paper sensor could become an effective tool for the rapid monitoring of imatinib in human serum samples.

Changes in IDH2, TET2 and KDM2B Gene Expression After Treatment With Classic Chemotherapeutic Agents and Decitabine in Myelogenous Leukemia Cell Lines

Background

Hematological malignancies are a heterogeneous group of tumors with increased proliferative and auto-replicative capacity. Despite treatment advances, post-treatment quality of life remains highly affected. Studies addressing the molecular mechanisms of these diseases are critical for the development of effective, rapid and selective therapies, since few therapeutic strategies succeed in being effective without triggering high-grade toxicities or debilitating late effects. Our aim of this study was to verify changes in the expression of genes involved in the malignant phenotype of hematological malignancies, by treating human cell lines in vitro with classic chemotherapeutic agents and the demethylating agent, decitabine.

Methods

KASUMI-1 and K-562 human myeloid leukemia cell lines were plated at a density of 3 × 10⁴ cells/well and treated with increasing concentrations of different chemotherapeutic agents commonly used in the clinical setting. After 24 and 48 h of treatment, cell viability was tested, and RNA was extracted. Complementary DNA (cDNA) was synthesized and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was performed to evaluate the gene expression of IDH2, TET2 and KDM2B.

Results

A modulation in gene expression was observed before and after treatment with classic chemotherapeutic agents. It was possible to demonstrate a difference in gene expression when cells were treated with chemotherapeutic agents or decitabine alone when compared to chemotherapeutic agents in association with decitabine.

Conclusions

The genes tested, and the modulation of their expression during in vitro treatments suggest that IDH2, TET2, and KDM2B should be further investigated as potential biomarkers for ongoing treatment response and follow-up for patients diagnosed with hematological malignancies of the myeloid lineage.