B-myb antisense oligonucleotides inhibit proliferation of human hematopoietic cell lines

The B-myb gene is highly homologous to the c-myb protooncogene in several domains and also shares some of the functions of c-myb in that it can act as a transcriptional activator. In addition, the expression of both the B-myb and c-myb genes correlates with proliferation of normal hematopoietic cells. We investigated more directly the role of B-myb in proliferation of hematopoietic cell lines using B-myb-specific antisense oligonucleotides. We showed that several anti-B-myb oligonucleotides, complementary to distinct regions of the gene, inhibit significantly and in a dose-dependent manner the proliferation of all myeloid or lymphoid cell lines tested. This block in proliferation was not accompanied by detectable differentiation of U937 or HL60 cells to macrophages or granulocytes either spontaneously or after exposure to chemical agents. These data suggest that the B-myb gene, like c-myb, is necessary for hematopoietic cell proliferation.