Chemokine IL-8 and chemokine receptor CXCR3 and CXCR4 gene expression in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia at first relapse.

In this study, we examined the gene expression of interleukin (IL)-8, CXCR3, and CXCR4 in leukemic cells from 100 children with relapsed B-cell progenitors (BCP) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). IL-8, CXCR3, and CXCR4 were expressed in almost all bone marrow (BM) samples. The CXCR4 expression significantly correlated with known prognostic factors at relapse: time point and site of relapse. Patients who had a combined BM relapse (n=21) had lower IL-8 and CXCR4 expression than those who had an isolated BM relapse (n=79). The CXCR3 expression was higher in female patients (n=39) than in male patients (n=61). However, this did not reach prognostic relevance in relapsed ALL.