Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 15, 2026
07:39
Isolation of CD4+ T-cells and Analysis of Circulating T-follicular Helper (cTfh) Cell Subsets from Peripheral Blood Using 6-color Flow Cytometry
Published on: January 7, 2019
[Relationship between thymus output function in CML patients and their bcr-abl mRNA levels]
Su-Xia Geng1, Xin DU, Jian-Yu Weng
1Department of Hemotology, Guangdong Provincial People Hospital, Guangzhou 510080, China.
Zhongguo Shi Yan Xue Ye Xue Za Zhi
|May 11, 2007
Summary
Higher thymic output (TREC) in chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients may help eliminate residual CML cells. This study found TREC levels at diagnosis predicted better bcr-abl reduction over two years.
Area of Science:
- Hematology
- Immunology
- Molecular Biology
Context:
- Chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) is a myeloproliferative neoplasm characterized by the Philadelphia chromosome.
- Monitoring bcr-abl mRNA levels is crucial for assessing treatment response and disease burden in CML.
- Recent thymic output (RTO) function, indicated by T-cell receptor excision DNA circles (TREC), reflects recent T-cell production.
Purpose:
- To investigate the correlation between TREC levels and bcr-abl mRNA in CML patients.
- To evaluate the prognostic value of TREC as a marker for recent thymic output in CML.
- To determine if TREC levels can predict treatment outcomes in CML.
Summary:
- Quantitative real-time PCR was used to measure TREC and bcr-abl fusion gene transcripts in 15 CML patients.
- No significant correlation was found between initial TREC and bcr-abl levels.
- Patients with higher baseline TREC showed a greater reduction in bcr-abl levels after two years.
- One patient with high pre-hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) TREC achieved undetectable TREC post-HSCT, while another had low bcr-abl.
Impact:
- Higher thymic output function (indicated by TREC) may be beneficial in eradicating residual CML cells.
- TREC levels could serve as a potential prognostic marker for treatment response in CML.
- This finding suggests a role for immune reconstitution in managing CML post-treatment.
