KEY TAKEAWAYS
- The study aimed to investigate the predictive potential of ATRA-dependent transcription factors RARα and PPARβ/δ gene expression in MDS patients.
- Researchers noticed significant associations between RARα and PPARβ/δ genes and the diagnosis and prognosis of MDS, highlighting their potential as valuable biomarkers.
Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) pose a significant clinical challenge due to their heterogeneous nature and the heightened risk of progression to acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Identifying novel diagnostic and prognostic markers is imperative for enhanced clinical management.
Nikolay Kalitin and the team aimed to focus on exploring the predictive potential of RARα and PPARβ/δ gene expression, which are ATRA-dependent nuclear transcription factors, in MDS patients.
Researchers performed an inclusive analysis by collecting peripheral blood specimens from 49 MDS patients and 15 healthy volunteers. These specimens were subsequently separated in a Ficoll density gradient to obtain mononuclear cell fractions. Gene expression analysis was conducted using the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) technique, providing a comprehensive exploration of RARα and PPARβ/δ gene expression in the study cohort.
About the gene expression analysis, in the mononuclear cell fractions of MDS patients, RARα expression exhibited a significant increase (P<0.05), while PPARβ/δ expression showed a notable decrease (P<0.01) in comparison to healthy volunteers. Further stratification based on the risk of disease progression revealed no statistically significant difference in RARα expression among MDS patient groups, whereas PPARβ/δ expression was significantly lower in the high-risk group compared to the low-risk group (P<0.05).
The expression of RARα demonstrated a significant association with overall survival (P<0.05). In terms of diagnostic potential, ROC analysis indicated that PPARβ/δ expression, rather than RARα expression, could serve as a potential diagnostic marker for MDS patients (AUC=0.75, P=0.003 and AUC=0.65, P=0.081, respectively).
The study concluded that RARα and PPARβ/δ genes emerge as promising biomarkers, potentially linked to the diagnosis and prognosis of MDS.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38418133/
Kalitin N, Dudina G, Kostritsa N, et al. (2024). “Clinical Relevance of Differential RARα and PPARβ/δ Expression in Myelodysplastic Syndromes.” In Vivo. 2024 Mar-Apr;38(2):657-664. doi: 10.21873/invivo.13486. PMID: 38418133; PMCID: PMC10905464.
