Selection of down-regulated sequences along the monocytic differentiation of leukemic HL60 cells.

In order to dissect the molecular mechanisms of monocytic differentiation we have developed a subtractive hybridisation method based on a simplified 'representational difference analysis'. We have selected 16 sequences and confirmed their down-regulation along the TPA-induced monocytic differentiation of HL60 cells. Among these sequences we have identified the alpha-tubulin, the TaxREB protein and two ribosomal protein sequences which had not been previously described as differentially expressed. These results add to our knowledge about the molecules implicated along the monocytic differentiation and growth arrest of leukemic cells and provide a first step in the study of their respective roles.