Feinberg
Northwestern Medicine | Northwestern University | Faculty Profiles

News Center

  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Menu
  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
    • Podcast
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Home » Uncovering the Pathology of a Rare Pediatric Leukemia
Disease Discoveries

Uncovering the Pathology of a Rare Pediatric Leukemia

By Anna WilliamsMay 4, 2017
Share
Facebook Twitter Email
John Crispino
John Crispino, PhD, the Robert I. Lurie, MD, and Lora S. Lurie Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology, was a co-author of the paper published in Cancer Cell.

A team of scientists has demonstrated the mechanism by which ETO2-GLIS2, a gene fusion, promotes the development of an aggressive form of pediatric leukemia. The findings, published in Cancer Cell, also reveal an opportunity for the development of therapeutics.

The study was co-authored by John Crispino, PhD, the Robert I. Lurie, MD, and Lora S. Lurie Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology.

Acute megakaryoblastic leukemia (AMKL), a rare type of blood cancer predominantly found in children, has two major pediatric subgroups: AMKL in patients with Down syndrome and those without. While the disease in those with Down syndrome (DS) is relatively well-defined and carries a good prognosis, non-DS AMKL is much less well-understood.

Recently, scientists discovered that a gene fusion called ETO2-GLIS2 — produced by an inversion on chromosome 16 — is present in 20 to 30 percent of cases of non-DS AMKL, and is associated with a very poor patient prognosis. But up until now, it was unclear exactly how this gene fusion blocks normal cell differentiation, a hallmark of leukemia.

In the current study, the scientists illustrated how ETO2-GLIS2 induces an irregular transcription network that underlies AMKL. They further demonstrated that expression of a peptide that inhibits ETO2-GLIS2 oligomerization could release the differentiation block — insights which could inform the development of novel therapeutics.

“Acute megakaryoblastic leukemia is a devastating blood cancer that requires new targeted and efficacious therapies,” Crispino said. “The discovery of the mechanism by which ETO2-GLIS2 fusion promotes leukemia provides important new insights into ways to target these malignant cells.”

Crispino is also a professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics and a member of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University.

Pediatric research at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago is conducted through the Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute.

The research, led by scientists at the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM), was supported by the Institut National Du Cancer, Fédération Enfants et Santé and Société Française de lutte contre les Cancers et les Leucémies de l’Enfant et l’Adolescent, Association Laurette Fugain, a José Carreras EHA award, Fondation ARC, Fondation Gustave Roussy, SIRIC-SOCRATE, Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale, Cancéropôle Ile de France, INCa-PlanCancer “Soutien pour la formation” 2009–2013, Fondation de France, Lady Tata Foundation, and Gustave Roussy Genomic Core Facility.

Cancer Research
Share. Facebook Twitter Email

Related Posts

Hospitals Bound to Patient Safety Rules that Aren’t all Backed by Evidence

Jun 24, 2022

Identifying Protein Interactions that Promote Cancer Growth

Jun 24, 2022

Combination Treatment May Improve Quality of Life in Kidney Cancer

Jun 23, 2022

Comments are closed.

Latest News

Hospitals Bound to Patient Safety Rules that Aren’t all Backed by Evidence

Jun 24, 2022

Identifying Protein Interactions that Promote Cancer Growth

Jun 24, 2022

Combination Treatment May Improve Quality of Life in Kidney Cancer

Jun 23, 2022

Calcium Channel Blockers May Improve Chemotherapy Response

Jun 21, 2022

Expanded Role for Calcium Channels in T-Cells

Jun 17, 2022
  • News Center Home
  • Categories
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
  • News Archives
  • About Us
Flickr Photos
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0070
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0066
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0054
Northwestern University 2022. Photo by Jim Prisching
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0077
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0063
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0111
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0083
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0018
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0023
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0072 (2)
20220607_Feinberg Campus_0120

Northwestern University logo

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

RSS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Flickr YouTube Instagram
Copyright © 2022 Northwestern University
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Disclaimer
  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Policy Statements

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.