ENOX2 NADH Oxidase: A BCR-ABL1-Dependent Cell Surface and Secreted Redox Protein in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a disease caused by the acquisition of BCR-ABL1 fusion in hematopoietic stem cells. In this study, we focus on the oncofetal ENOX2 protein as a potential secretable biomarker in CML.

We used cell culture, western blot, quantitative RT-PCR, ELISA, transcriptome analyses, and bioinformatics techniques to investigate ENOX2 mRNA and protein expression.

Western blot analyses of UT-7 and TET-inducible Ba/F3 cell lines demonstrated the upregulation of the ENOX2 protein. BCR-ABL1 was found to induce ENOX2 overexpression in a kinase-dependent manner. We confirmed increased ENOX2 mRNA expression in a cohort of CML patients at diagnosis. In a series of CML patients, ELISA assays showed a highly significant increase of ENOX2 protein levels in the plasma of patients with CML compared to controls. Reanalyzing the transcriptomic dataset confirmed ENOX2 mRNA overexpression in the chronic phase of the disease. Bioinformatic analyses identified several genes whose mRNA expressions were positively correlated with ENOX2 in the context of BCR-ABL1. Some of them encode proteins involved in cellular functions compatible with the growth deregulation observed in CML.

Our results highlight the upregulation of a secreted redox protein in a BCR-ABL1-dependent manner in CML. The data presented here suggest that ENOX2, through its transcriptional mechanism, plays a significant role in BCR-ABL1 leukemogenesis.