BACKGROUND： Nearly 15% of acute myeloid leukemia （AML） cases are caused by aberrant expression of AML 1-ETO, a fusion protein generated by the t（8;21） chromosomal translocation. Since its discovery, AML 1-ETO has...BACKGROUND： Nearly 15% of acute myeloid leukemia （AML） cases are caused by aberrant expression of AML 1-ETO, a fusion protein generated by the t（8;21） chromosomal translocation. Since its discovery, AML 1-ETO has served as a prototype to understand how leukemia fusion proteins deregulate transcription to promote leukemogenesis. Another leukemia fusion protein, E2A-Pbx 1, generated by the t（1; 19） translocation, is involved in acute lymphoblastic leukemias （ALLs）. While AML 1 - ETO and E2A-Pbxl are structurally unrelated fusion proteins, we have recently shown that a common axis, the ETO/E-protein interaction, is involved in the regulation of both fusion proteins, underscoring the importance of studying protein-protein interactions in elucidating the mechanisms of leukemia fusion proteins. OBJECTIVE： In this review, we aim to summarize these new developments while also providing a historic overview of the related early studies. METHODS： A total of 218 publications were reviewed in this article, a majority of which were published after 2004. We also downloaded 3D structures of AML1-ETO domains from Protein Data Bank and provided a systematic summary of their structures. RESULTS： By reviewing the literature, we summarized early and recent findings on AML 1-ETO, including its protein-protein interactions, transcriptional and lenkemogenic mechanisms, as well as the recently reported involvement of ETO family corepressors in regulating the function of E2A-Pbxl. CONCLUSION： While the recent development in genomic and structural studies has clearly demonstrated that the fusion proteins function by directly regulating transcription, a further understanding of the underlying mechanisms, including crosstalk with other transcription factors and cofactors, and the protein-protein interactions in the context of native proteins, may be necessary for the development of highly targeted drugs for leukemia therapy.展开更多
文摘BACKGROUND： Nearly 15% of acute myeloid leukemia （AML） cases are caused by aberrant expression of AML 1-ETO, a fusion protein generated by the t（8;21） chromosomal translocation. Since its discovery, AML 1-ETO has served as a prototype to understand how leukemia fusion proteins deregulate transcription to promote leukemogenesis. Another leukemia fusion protein, E2A-Pbx 1, generated by the t（1; 19） translocation, is involved in acute lymphoblastic leukemias （ALLs）. While AML 1 - ETO and E2A-Pbxl are structurally unrelated fusion proteins, we have recently shown that a common axis, the ETO/E-protein interaction, is involved in the regulation of both fusion proteins, underscoring the importance of studying protein-protein interactions in elucidating the mechanisms of leukemia fusion proteins. OBJECTIVE： In this review, we aim to summarize these new developments while also providing a historic overview of the related early studies. METHODS： A total of 218 publications were reviewed in this article, a majority of which were published after 2004. We also downloaded 3D structures of AML1-ETO domains from Protein Data Bank and provided a systematic summary of their structures. RESULTS： By reviewing the literature, we summarized early and recent findings on AML 1-ETO, including its protein-protein interactions, transcriptional and lenkemogenic mechanisms, as well as the recently reported involvement of ETO family corepressors in regulating the function of E2A-Pbxl. CONCLUSION： While the recent development in genomic and structural studies has clearly demonstrated that the fusion proteins function by directly regulating transcription, a further understanding of the underlying mechanisms, including crosstalk with other transcription factors and cofactors, and the protein-protein interactions in the context of native proteins, may be necessary for the development of highly targeted drugs for leukemia therapy.
