GEFITINIB EFFECTS IN A NPM1-MUTATED ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA CELL LINE

Abstract

Objective In 2018, leukemias were among the 10 most common cancers in Brazil. The main oral manifestation of leukemias is gingival enlargement. Current evidence supports that gefitinib, an epidermal growth factor receptor inhibitor, is able to revert the undifferentiated phenotype of leukemia cell lines and to inhibit cell proliferation. However, the possible effects of gefitinib in the treatment of patients with mutation in the NPM1 (nucleophosmin) gene, the most frequent genetic alteration in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), were not previously reported. Therefore, in the present work, we evaluate the effects of gefitinib on the differentiation, proliferation, and death rates of NPM1-mutated OCI-AML3 cell line. Study Design The flow cytometric analysis of CD11b, CD11c, Ki-67, and annexin-V antibodies were performed in OCI-AML3 cells treated with gefitinib. Results Crescent doses of gefitinib are able to efficiently trigger apoptosis and decrease the proliferation index of OCI-AML3 cells after 24, 48, and 72 hours of treatment, but it did not induce the CD11b and CD11c expression. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that gefitinib treatment sensitizes OCI-AML cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Future studies are necessary to define if gefitinib can be helpful in the treatment of the patients with AML. FAPESP (2016/02713-2 and 2017/00775-3).