Working Towards a Better Way to Detect Minimal Residual Disease

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Leuk Res. 2003 Oct;27(10):925-34.

Quantitative assessment of contaminating tumor cells in autologous

peripheral blood stem cells of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas using

immunoglobulin heavy chain gene allele-specific oligonucleotide real-

time quantitative-polymerase chain reaction.

Yashima A, Maesawa C, Uchiyama M, Tarusawa M, Satoh T, Satoh M,

Enomoto S, Sugawara K, Numaoka H, Murai K, Utsugisawa T, Ishida Y,

Masuda T.

Department of Pathology, Iwate Medical University School of Medicine,

Uchimaru 19-1, 020-8505, Morioka, Japan

A real-time quantitative-polymerase chain reaction (RQ-PCR) targeting

the immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgH) gene has been used for the

quantification of minimal residual disease (MRD) in B-cell

hematological malignancies.

In non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), experimental costs are increased, as a

large number of primer-probe sets are required because of diversity,

due to somatic and ongoing mutations of the IgH gene. We developed an

allele-specific oligonucleotide (ASO) combined with a germline

consensus probe-based RQ-PCR assay and examined MRD in peripheral

blood stem cells (PBSC). The IgH consensus probes were adapted in

seven (50%) of 14 amplifiable cases. Patients with heavily

contaminated tumor cells in PBSC relapsed after PBSC transplantation.

Our strategy will contribute to the development of a cost-efficient,

precisely quantitative and systemic detection assay for MRD in NHL.

PMID: 12860013 [PubMed - in process]