BAALC RQ Kit

Reagent kit for quantitative determination of the BAALC gene expression level in clinical material using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with real-time hybridization-fluorescence detection.

The test system may be used to assess probability of relapse in the patients with acute leukemia.

The kit of reagents is designed to perform assays in a quantitative format for 24 clinical samples in duplicate (132 PCR reactions, including controls).

Additional information about the molecular marker:

To date, monitoring AML patients after therapy using molecular biology methods for the presence of residual leukemic cells (assessment of minimal residual disease, MRD) is the most important method in evaluating efficiency of therapy. However, feasibility of this approach is limited by the cohort of patients expressing oncogene markers characteristic of leukemic cells suitable for detection with quantitative real-time PCR, e.g., chimeric genes PML-RARA, CBFB-MYH11, AML1-ETO (RUNX1-RUNX1T1), or specific mutations in FLT3 and NPM1 genes. About a half of AML patients do not exhibit such molecular genetic aberrations. These clinical cases require development of alternative approaches to MRD monitoring, being a key factor in assessing efficiency of leukemia treatment. Among these approaches, quantitative real-time PCR (RT-PCR) may be used for detection of gene transcripts, over-expressed in leukemic cells versus normal bone marrow and peripheral blood cells.

Over recent years, upon searching for novel AML-associated mutations, the BAALC gene (Brain And Acute Leukemia, Cytoplasmic) was described. This gene is located on chromosome 8 (8q22.3), and is normally expressed in neuroectodermal tissues, and, at low levels, in progenitor bone marrow stem cells. (1). BAALC expression in mature bone marrow cells and not detectable in the peripheral blood of healthy people. To date, pathomolecular basis of BAALC-mediated leukemogenesis is relatively well understood (2). According to current data on AML, BAALC overexpression occurs in more than 50% of patients with normal karyotype (3). At the same time, BAALC overexpression is associated with less differentiated AML variants, such as M0, M1, and M2 variants. BAALC overexpression in leukemic cells is associated with poor overall survival and increased cumulative risk of post-therapeutic disease relapse.

Related publications:

     1 Christian Langer, Michael D. Radmacher, Amy S. Ruppert et al. High BAALC expression associates with other molecular prognostic markers, poor outcome, and a distinct gene-expression signature in cytogenetically normal patients younger than 60 years with acute myeloid leukemia: a Cancer and Leukemia Group B (CALGB) study. Blood. 2008 Jun 1;111(11):5371-9

     2 Morita K, Masamoto Y, Kataoka K et al. BAALC potentiates oncogenic ERK pathway through interactions with MEKK1 and KLF4. Leukemia. 2015 Nov;29(11):2248-56.

     3 Damiani D, Tiribelli M, Franzoni A et al. BAALC overexpression retains its negative prognostic role across all cytogenetic risk groups in acute myeloid leukemia patients. Am J Hematol. 2013 Oct;88(10):848-52

     4 GabertJ, Beillard E  et al. Standardization  and quality control studies of real-time quantitative  reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction of fusion gene transcripts for residual disease detection in leukemia – a Europe Against Cancer program. Leukemia. 2003 Dec;17(12):2318-57.

     5 Velden, V.H., Hochhaus, A., Cazzaniga, G., et al. (2003) Detection of minimal residual disease in hematologic malignancies by real-time quantitative PCR: principles, approaches, and laboratory aspects. Leukemia 17, 1013.

     6 Beillard, E. et al. (2003) Evaluation of candidate control genes for diagnosis and residual disease detection in leukemic patients using ‘real- time’ quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RQ- PCR) - a Europe against cancer program. Leukemia 17, 2474.

Ordering information:

• BAALC RQ Kit, 24 tests                                                                                            Cat.No RQ-18-24

Additiional reagents:

TriZ Reagent Kit                                                                                                          Cat.No TRK-100

ReverZyme Kit                                                                                                             Cat.No RT-1

Price: on request 

Reagents are for research use only (RUO)