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Updated: May 15, 2026

Modeling Chemotherapy Resistant Leukemia In Vitro
Published on: February 9, 2016
Adipose tissue attracts and protects acute lymphoblastic leukemia cells from chemotherapy
Rocky Pramanik1, Xia Sheng, Brian Ichihara
1Center for Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Abstract:
Obesity is associated with an increased risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) relapse. Using mouse and cell co-culture models, we investigated whether adipose tissue attracts ALL to a protective microenvironment. Syngeneically implanted ALL cells migrated into adipose tissue within ten days. In vitro, murine ALL cells migrated towards adipose tissue explants and 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Human and mouse ALL cells migrated toward adipocyte conditioned media, which was mediated by SDF-1α. In addition, adipose tissue explants protected ALL cells against daunorubicin and vincristine. Our findings suggest that ALL migration into adipose tissue could contribute to drug resistance and potentially relapse.
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