Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Relapse of acute leukemia is possibly correlated with abnormal expression of cellular adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1).

OBJECTIVE: To observe the level of VCAM-1 in serum and bone marrow stromal cell (MSC) supernatant of patients with relapsed acute leukemia.

METHODS: Samples of serum and MSC supernatant were collected from 17 patients with remission-phase and relapse-phase acute leukemia hospitalized in the Department of Hematology, the Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University between June 2006 and March 2008. The levels of VCAM-1 were measured with ELISA in remission and relapse phases.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Compared with the remission phase, the VCAM-1 level of serum was significantly increased in the relapse phase (P < 0.05). At 1 and 3 weeks after in vitro culture, the VCAM-1 level in the MSC supernatant was not changed (P > 0.05), but it was significantly increased on the fourth week (P < 0.05). The results demonstrated that VCAM-1 expression of serum and MSC supernatant in the relapse phase was greater than that in the remission phase, suggesting that abnormal expression of VCAM-1 was possibly correlated with relapse of acute leukemia.