Photo Credit: Nemes Laszlo

Study identifies 85 genes linked to Acute Myeloid Leukemia prognosis, leading to a five-gene risk model with potential as a prognostic tool and offering insights into immunotherapy targets.

The following is a summary of “A combined immune and exosome-related risk signature as prognostic biomarkers in acute myeloid leukemia,” published in the January 2024 issue of Hematology by Fang et al.

Researchers launched a retrospective study to determine if a combined immune-related and exosome-related gene (ERG) profile held prognostic value in Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients.

They analyzed immune-ERG profiles for 151 AML patients from TCGA. Constructing and optimizing a risk model involved a combination of univariate Cox regression and LASSO regression analysis. External validation using GEO datasets ensured the robustness of the risk model. Investigating the role of these genes in AML included KEGG and GO enrichment analyses. Assessing variations in immune cell infiltrations among risk groups utilized four algorithms. Single-cell RNA seq analyzed the expression of hub genes in specific cells.

The results showed 85 immune-ERGs associated with prognosis, facilitating the construction of an AML risk model. Based on five immune ERGs (CD37, NUCB2, LSP1, MGST1, and PLXNB1), the model correlated with clinical outcomes. Independent prognostic factors included age, FAB classification, cytogenetics risk, and risk score. The five immune-ERGs correlated with cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction and antigen processing and presentation. Notably, the risk model displayed significant associations with immune responses and the expression of immune checkpoints.

Investigators concluded that the five-gene immune-ERG model in AML predicted patient outcomes, hinting at immunotherapy targets.

Source: tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/16078454.2023.2300855