Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0023418 (leukemia)
 93,477 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The protein products of proto-oncogenes implicated in T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia include two distinct families of presumptive transcription factors. RBTN1 and RBTN2 encode highly related proteins that possess cysteine-rich LIM motifs. TAL1, TAL2 and LYL1 encode a unique subgroup of basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins that share exceptional homology in their bHLH sequences. We have found that RBTN1 and RBTN2 have the ability to interact with each of the leukemogenic bHLH proteins (TAL1, TAL2 and LYL1). These interactions occur in vivo and appear to be mediated by sequences within the LIM and bHLH domains. The LIM-bHLH interactions are highly specific in that RBTN1 and RBTN2 will associate with TAL1, TAL2 and LYL1, but not with other bHLH proteins, including E12, E47, Id1, NHLH1, AP4, MAX, MYC and MyoD1. Moreover, RBTN1 and RBTN2 can interact with TAL1 polypeptides that exist in assembled bHLH heterodimers (e.g. TAL1-E47), suggesting that the RBTN proteins can influence the functional properties of TAL1. Finally, we have identified a subset of leukemia patients that harbor tumor-specific rearrangements of both their RBTN2 and TAL1 genes. Thus, the activated alleles of these genes may promote leukemia cooperatively, perhaps as a result of bHLH-LIM interactions between their protein products.
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PMID:Specific in vivo association between the bHLH and LIM proteins implicated in human T cell leukemia. 795 52

TAL1 gene rearrangement is the most common genetic defect associated with T cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (T-ALL). Tumour-specific rearrangements of TAL1 arise as a result of either chromosome translocation or local DNA recombination. TAL1 gene products possess the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) motif, a DNA-binding domain common to several known transcription factors. The bHLH domain of TAL1 is especially homologous to those encoded by TAL2 and LYL1, distinct genes that were also identified on the basis of chromosomal rearrangement in T-ALL. Thus, TAL1, TAL2 and LYL1 constitute a unique family of bHLH proteins, each of which is a potential mediator of T cell leukaemogenesis.
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PMID:TAL1, TAL2 and LYL1: a family of basic helix-loop-helix proteins implicated in T cell acute leukaemia. 814 19

Transcription factors are commonly involved in leukemia by activation through chromosomal translocations and normally function in cell type(s) that differ from that of the tumor. TAL2 is a member of a basic helix-loop-helix gene family specifically involved in T cell leukemogenesis. Null mutations of Tal2 have been made in mice to determine its function during development. Tal2 null mutant mice show no obvious defects of hematopoiesis. During embryogenesis, Tal2 expression is restricted to the developing midbrain, dorsal diencephalon, and rostroventral diencephalic/telencephalic boundary, partly along presumptive developing fiber tracts. The null mutant mice are viable at birth but growth become progressively retarded and they do not survive to reproductive age. Tal2-deficient mice show a distinct dysgenesis of the midbrain tectum. Due to loss of superficial gray and optical layers, the superior colliculus is reduced in size and the inferior colliculus is abnormally rounded and protruding. Death is most likely due to progressive hydrocephalus which appears to be caused by obstruction of the foramen of Monro (the connection between the ventricles of the forebrain). Thus, in addition to its oncogenicity when ectopically expressed, Tal2 normally plays a pivotal role in brain development and without this gene, mice cannot survive to maturity.
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PMID:The T cell oncogene Tal2 is necessary for normal development of the mouse brain. 1107 72

The activation of oncogenic transcription factors defines distinct molecular subsets of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia and has prognostic relevance in children. We investigated the prognostic effect of the expression levels of eight oncogenic transcription factors--TLX1 (HOX11), TLX3 (HOX11L2), TAL1, TAL2, LYL1, OLIG2 (BHLHB1), LMO1, and LMO2--in 52 adults with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. The leukaemia-specific survival rate for the 16 TLX1-positive patients was 88% (90% CI 73-100%), compared with 56% (42-70%) for all other cases (p=0.019). Only the TLX1 oncogene expression subgroup showed difference in leukaemia-specific survival. Our results suggest that overexpression of TLX1 confers a good outlook for adults with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Furthermore, our findings lead to questions about whether stem-cell transplantation in first remission is necessary for effective treatment of patients in the low-risk subgroup of patients with TLX1 oncogene expression.
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PMID:Prognostic importance of TLX1 (HOX11) oncogene expression in adults with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. 1497 18

Transcription factors play a crucial role in regulating differentiation processes during human life and are important in disease. The basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors Tal1 and Lyl1 play a major role in the regulation of gene expression in the hematopoietic system and are involved in human leukemia. Tal2, which belongs to the same family of transcription factors as Tal1 and Lyl1, is also involved in human leukaemia. However, little is known regarding the expression and regulation of Tal2 in hematopoietic cells. Here we show that Tal2 is expressed in hematopoietic cells of the myeloid lineage. Interestingly, we found that usage of the Tal2 promoter is different in human and mouse cells. Two promoters, hP1 and hP2 drive Tal2 expression in human erythroleukemia K562 cells, however in mouse RAW cells only the mP1 promoter is used. Furthermore, we found that Tal2 expression is upregulated during oesteoclastogenesis. We show that Tal2 is a direct target gene of the myeloid transcription factor PU.1, which is a key transcription factor for osteoclast gene expression. Strikingly, PU.1 binding to the P1 promoter is conserved between mouse and human, but PU.1 binding to P2 was only detected in human K562 cells. Additionally, we provide evidence that Tal2 influences the expression of the osteoclastic differentiation gene TRACP. These findings provide novel insight into the expression control of Tal2 in hematopoietic cells and reveal a function of Tal2 as a regulator of gene expression during osteoclast differentiation.
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PMID:The T-cell oncogene Tal2 Is a Target of PU.1 and upregulated during osteoclastogenesis. 2408 57

T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) is an aggressive malignancy of thymocytes. Despite significant improvement in the treatment of T-ALL, approximately 20% of children and most adults succumb to resistant or relapsed disease. Transformation events occur during crucial steps of thymocyte development and have been related to the expression of certain oncogenes such as TAL2, TLX1, LYL1, LMO1, and NOTCH1. Mutations that lead to constitutive activation of NOTCH1 are most commonly found in human patients with T-ALL. Moreover, overexpression of the intracellular portion of NOTCH1 can lead to the initiation of T-ALL in mouse models. These findings suggest that NOTCH1 may promote tumorigenesis through the regulation of differentiation of leukemic cells, and, potentially, of leukemia-initiating cell identity and function. Multiple studies and clinical trials aimed at targeting NOTCH1 in T-ALL or using NOTCH1 mutations as a prognostic tool are currently underway. Recent studies unexpectedly found that activating mutations in NOTCH1 are correlated with better treatment outcome. Here we review these studies and discuss possible explanations for these findings.
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PMID:Friend or foe: can activating mutations in NOTCH1 contribute to a favorable treatment outcome in patients with T-ALL? 2540 53