EVALUATION OF SECRETED FRIZZLED-RELATED PROTEIN-2 METHYLATION STATUS IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC MYELOID LEUKEMIA

Abstract

BackgroundChronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML) is a myeloproliferative disorder defined by the chromosomal translocation (t) (9;22) encoding for the BCR-ABL fusion gene. Tumor development and progression may be affected by hypermethylation of promoter regions of certain genes. Secreted Frizzled-Related Proteins (SFRPs) genes produce Wnt signaling antagonists, and their epigenetic silencing has been detected in multiple types of leukaemia. While epigenetic silencing has been broadly reported for SFRPs, SFRP2 is a family member less studied in leukaemia. ObjectivesTo evaluate SFRP2 gene methylation patterns in CML patients compared with healthy individuals. Materials and MethodsSodium bisulfite was applied to the extracted DNA from blood samples of 75 CML patients and 25 healthy subjects who served as the control group. The DNA was then analyzed by methylation-specific high-resolution melting (MS-HRM) using specific primers for the SFRP2 gene in promoter sequence. ResultsForty-five out of 75 CML patients investigated were shown to have SFRP2 methylation percentages between 50% to 100%, whereas 19 out of 25 healthy subjects had a methylation level of less than 50%. ConclusionThe current study demonstrated that SFRP2 promoter hypermethylation exists in CML, as in several other solid tumours. Hence, methylation of this gene may play a part in initiating leukemogenesis.