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It is now conceivable that leukemogenesis requires two types of mutations, class I and class II mutations. We previously established a mouse bone marrow-derived HF6, an IL-3-dependent cell line, that was immortalized by a class II mutation MLL/SEPT6 and can be fully transformed by class I mutations such as FLT3 mutants. To understand the molecular mechanism of leukemogenesis, particularly progression of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) to acute leukemia, we made cDNA libraries from the samples of patients and screened them by expression-cloning to detect class I mutations that render HF6 cells factor-independent. We identified RasGRP4, an activator of Ras, as a candidate for class I mutation from three of six patients (MDS/MPD = 1, MDS-RA = 1, MDS/AML = 2, CMMoL/AML = 1 and AML-M2 = 1). To investigate the potential roles of RasGRP4 in leukemogenesis, we tested its in vivo effect in a mouse bone marrow transplantation (BMT) model. C57BL/6J mice transplanted with RasGRP4-transduced primary bone marrow cells died of T cell leukemia, myeloid leukemia, or myeloid leukemia with T cell leukemia. To further examine if the combination of class I and class II mutations accelerated leukemic transformation, we performed a mouse BMT model in which both AML1 mutant (S291fsX300) and RasGRP4 were transduced into bone marrow cells. The double transduction led to early onset of T cell leukemia but not of AML in the transplanted mice when compared to transduction of RasGRP4 alone. Thus, we have identified RasGRP4 as a gene potentially involved in leukemogenesis and suggest that RasGRP4 cooperates with AML1 mutations in T cell leukemogenesis as a class I mutation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recurrent mutations in the gene encoding additional sex combs-like 1 (ASXL1) are found in various hematologic malignancies and associated with poor prognosis. In particular, ASXL1 mutations are common in patients with hematologic malignancies associated with myelodysplasia, including myelodysplastic syndromes (MDSs), and chronic myelomonocytic leukemia. Although loss-of-function ASXL1 mutations promote myeloid transformation, a large subset of ASXL1 mutations is thought to result in stable truncation of ASXL1. Here we demonstrate that C-terminal–truncating Asxl1 mutations (ASXL1-MTs) inhibited myeloid differentiation and induced MDS-like disease in mice. ASXL1-MT mice displayed features of human-associated MDS, including multi-lineage myelodysplasia, pancytopenia, and occasional progression to overt leukemia. ASXL1-MT resulted in derepression of homeobox A9 (Hoxa9) and microRNA-125a (miR-125a) expression through inhibition of polycomb repressive complex 2–mediated (PRC2-mediated) methylation of histone H3K27. miR-125a reduced expression of C-type lectin domain family 5, member a (Clec5a), which is involved in myeloid differentiation. In addition, HOXA9 expression was high in MDS patients with ASXL1-MT, while CLEC5A expression was generally low. Thus, ASXL1-MT–induced MDS-like disease in mice is associated with derepression of Hoxa9 and miR-125a and with Clec5a dysregulation. Our data provide evidence for an axis of MDS pathogenesis that implicates both ASXL1 mutations and miR-125a as therapeutic targets in MDS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two types of CCAAT-enhancer-binding protein α (C/EBPα) mutants are found in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients: N-terminal frame-shift mutants (C/EBPα-N m ) generating p30 as a dominant form and C-terminal basic leucine zipper domain mutants (C/EBPα-C m ). We have previously shown that C/EBPα-K304_R323dup belonging to C/EBPα-C m , but not C/EBPα-T60fsX159 belonging to C/EBPα-N m , alone induced AML in mouse bone marrow transplantation (BMT) models. Here we show that various C/EBPα-C m mutations have a similar, but not identical, potential in myeloid leukemogenesis. Notably, like C/EBPα-K304_R323dup, any type of C/EBPα-C m tested (C/EBPα-S299_K304dup, K313dup, or N321D) by itself induced AML, albeit with different latencies after BMT; C/EBPα-N321D induced AML with the shortest latency. By analyzing the gene expression profiles of C/EBPα-N321D- and mock-transduced c-kit + Sca-1 + Lin − cells, we identified Csf1r as a gene downregulated by C/EBPα-N321D. In addition, leukemic cells expressing C/EBPα-C m exhibited low levels of colony stimulating factor 1 receptor in mice. On the other hand, transduction with C/EBPα-N m did not influence Csf1r expression in c-kit + Sca-1 + Lin − cells, implying a unique role for C/EBPα-C m in downregulating Csf1r . Importantly, Csf1r overexpression collaborated with C/EBPα-N321D to induce fulminant AML with leukocytosis in mouse BMT models to a greater extent than did C/EBPα-N321D alone. Collectively, these results suggest that C/EBPα-C m -mediated downregulation of Csf1r has a negative, rather than a positive, impact on the progression of AML involving C/EBPα-C m , which might possibly be accelerated by additional genetic and/or epigenetic alterations inducing Csf1r upregulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]