WT1 regulates cyclin�A1 expression in K562�cells

Abstract

The restricted expression of Wilms tumor 1 (WT1) and cyclin A1 (CCNA1) in normal tissues, as opposed to their abnormal expression in leukemia demonstrates the applicability of WT1 and CCNA1 as cancer antigens for immunotherapy, and as markers for prognosis and relapse. In this study, the WT1 and CCNA1 mRNA levels were found to be elevated in bone marrow samples from pediatric acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL or AML-M3) patients, and to be quite varied in pediatric acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) patients, compared to non-leukemic bone marrow controls. Consistent with the observed upregulation of both WT1 and CCNA1 in APL, WT1 overexpression elevated the CCNA1 mRNA levels in K562 leukemia cells. Treatment with curcumin decreased the WT1 levels in K562 cells, and also decreased CCNA1 protein expression. The examination of the CCNA1 promoter identified potential canonical WT1 binding sites within the 3-kb region upstream of the transcription start site. Chromatin immunoprecipitation and luciferase reporter assays confirmed WT1 binding and the activation of the CCNA1 promoter. Furthermore, the GC-rich core CCNA1 promoter region provided additional non-canonical WT1 activation sites, as revealed by promoter assays. The importance of the GC-rich core region of the CCNA1 promoter was confirmed by treating the K562 cells with mithramycin A, which blocks the binding of zinc finger transcription factors to GC-rich sequences. Mithramycin A subsequently suppressed both CCNA1 promoter activity and protein expression in the K562 cells. Taken together, the data from the WT1 overexpression, and curcumin and mithramycin A treatment experiments, as well as those from chromatin binding assays, along with inferences from patient RNA analyses, establish a plausible link between WT1 and CCNA1, and support the functional significance of an elevated WT1 expression in leukemia, which may also affect CCNA1 expression.

Deep learning in molecular biology marker recognition of patients with acute myeloid leukemia

“…Studies have shown that WT1 is overexpressed in various hematological malignancies, such as aplastic anemia [10] and leukemia [11], but its expression in AML and its role in the classification of AML are still controversial. In this study, real-time quantitative PCR was used to analyze the relative expression of WT1 mRNA in bone marrow samples of 121 AML patients and nine non-leukemia patients.…”