PU.1 and C/EBPalpha Expression in Acute Myeloid Leukemia.

The myeloid transcription factors C/EBPalpha and PU.1 play a pivotal role in normal hematopoiesis and alterations of their function are involved in the pathogenesis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). So far, different mechanisms have been shown to affect their function and are important in some AML subsets. However most AML patients do not apparently show any alteration of these transcription factors. Here, we investigated C/EBPalpha and PU.1 mRNA levels by real time RT-PCR in 109 AML patients and correlated these data to morphology, FLT3 mutations and cytogenetics. C/EBPalpha and PU.1 levels were expressed as percentage of 18S. Twelve normal bone marrow mononuclear cells, four CD34+ cells isolated from normal bone marrow samples and 8 peripheral blood granulocytes and monocytes, were used as controls.

Heterogeneous PU.1 expression was observed in AML patients (median 0.657, range 0.004 – 24.148), while PU.1 levels were more homogeneous in normal bone marrows (median 1.5, range 0.328 – 4.737). In particular, 55 AML patients (50.5%) had PU.1 levels similar to controls, while 37 patients (33.9%) and 17 patients (15.6%) expressed PU.1 levels at levels lower and higher, than the control range, respectively. In the same way, also C/EBPalpha mRNA expression was variable (median 0.047, range 0.0002 – 1.858 in AML and median 0.064, range 0.008 – 0.138 in normal bone marrows). Fourty-five AML patients (41.%) displayed C/EBPalpha levels similar to the normal range, while 26 patients (23.8%) had lower and 37 (33.9%) higher C/EBPalpha expression.

Looking at different AML subsets, we found low C/EBPalpha mRNA in patients carrying recurrent chromosomal abnormalities, such as t(8;21) and inv16, as previously reported. On the other hand, patients carrying 11q23 rearrangements showed higher PU.1 levels than normal controls. No association was found between C/EBPalpha and PU.1 levels and therapy-related AML, AML with normal karyotype, AML with multilineage dysplasia, and AML not otherwise characterized (including previous F.A.B. categories).

Although experimental models showed that FLT3 internal tandem duplications (ITD) downregulate both transcription factors, we did not find any association between the presence of FLT3 ITD and D835 mutations and C/EBPalpha and PU.1 levels, both in the whole patient group and in patients with normal karyotype.

We then analyzed expression of two PU.1 and C/EBPalpha target genes, the M-CSF and G-CSF receptors, in patients expressing high and low levels of these transcription factors. A direct correlation was found between C/EBPalpha and G-CSFR levels (Spearman r = 0.5; p=0.02, 95% C.I. 0.07 – 0.78), while there was a tendency to correlation between PU.1 and M-CSFR, that did not reach the statistical significance.

Since mutations and post-trascriptional events may affect C/EBPalpha and PU.1 function, we analyzed protein expression of 18 patients by Western Blotting. PU.1 protein was expressed by all patients. The functional p42 C/EBPalpha isoform was absent in 2 patients that expressed only the 30 kDa isoform, and was undetectable in 5 of 18 patients.

In conclusion, down regulation of PU1 mRNA was found in one third of AML patients, consistently with the oncosuppressive role recently described. On the other side, C/EBPalpha is down-regulated in specific AML subsets, with recurrent cytogenetic abnormalities, while mutations and post-translational events could affect C/EBPalpha expression in other patients.