Dissecting the molecular mechanism of chronic myelogenous leukemia using murine models

Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is a complex disease that impinges on stem cell biology, the regulation of blood lineage determination and/or selection, as well as the overall regulation of hematopoietic cell proliferation, survival, adhesion and migration. Establishment of murine models for CML in recent years has enabled experimental analyses of molecular mechanisms in the pathogenesis of CML at the organismal level. This review summarizes the approaches used to develop murine models for CML and the analyses of the roles of functional domains and downstream signaling pathways of BCR-ABL (an oncoprotein generated by the t(9;22)(q34;ql1) translocation found in CML patients) and the roles of related tyrosine kinase oncoproteins, altered cytokine production and oncogene cooperation in the pathogenesis of CML-like disease using murine models. These in vivo studies of leukemogenesis will help to advance therapies for CML, as well as to understand fundamental rules of leukemogenesis and hematopoiesis, which should contribute in turn to the development of therapies for other related diseases.