DCC protein expression in hematopoietic cell populations and its relation to leukemogenesis.

Using flow cytometry and immunoprecipitation (IP), we have investigated the deleted in colon cancer (DCC) protein expression on the bone marrow (BM) and peripheral blood (PB) cells of 16 normal subjects, 17 myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) patients, and 10 acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) patients. With regard to the BM mononuclear cells (BM-MNCs) of normal subjects, the DCC protein expression ranged from 6.6 to 57.0%. Two-color flow cytometry revealed that among the IBM-MNCs the DCC protein was clearly expressed on the CD14+, CD13+, and factor 8+ cells, whereas it was low on the CD19+ and CD7+ cells and did not express on the CD34+, CD8+, and the glycophorin A+ cells. Further, the DCC protein expression was not seen on the PB CD11b+ and CD13+ cells. The IP results revealed that the 180-kD DCC protein was detected on the MNCs of both the BM and PB cells by the antibodies AF5, specific for the DCC extracellular domain, and G97-449, specific for the cytoplasmic domain. In contrast, flow cytometry did not detect the DCC protein on any BM-MNC MDS lineages (0.1-1.5%) or on AML leukemic cells (0.1-0.9%). The IP results indicated that the AF5 antibody did not detect the DCC protein on BM-MNCs of three of five MDS patients and four of five AML patients; however, the G97-449 antibody detected the 180-kD DCC protein in two MDS patients in whom AF5 had detected greatly reduced DCC band. These findings suggest that the DCC protein presence appears to be associated with normal hematopoiesis, and that its absence on the surfaces of the BM-MNCs and AML cells may contribute to the MDS and AML pathogenesis.