Leukocyte-associated immunoglobulin-like receptor-1, T-cell leukemia/lymphoma protein-1, and nuclear factor κB expression in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Background Immune regulation is crucial for the pathogenesis of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Leukocyte-associated immunoglobulin-like receptor-1 (LAIR-1) is an immune regulator, expressed by T and B immune cells. T-cell leukemia/lymphoma protein-1 (TCL1) is a coactivator of α-serine/threonine-protein kinase, and when dysregulated, it causes lymphomagenesis and cancer progression. Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is a transcription factor that regulates genes involved in immune responses. This study aimed to study the expression of LAIR-1, TCL1, and NF-κB on blasts in childhood ALL with evaluation of their prognostic value. Patients and methods This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 60 newly diagnosed childhood ALL cases. They were divided into group 1 (n=47) of B-cell ALL and group 2 (n=13) of T-cell ALL. The expression pattern of LAIR-1, TCL1, and NF-κB on blasts was assessed using flow cytometry. Results Correlation studies in total patients with ALL (n=60) revealed significant positive correlation between percentage of blasts expressing LAIR-1% and total leukocytic count (r=0.262, P=0.043) and percentage of blasts infiltrating the peripheral blood (r=0.292, P=0.025). A significant positive correlation of LAIR-1 mean fluorescence intensity with percentage of blasts expressing CD13 (r=0.293, P=0.026) and CD33 (r=0.373, P=0.004) was found. In group 2, a significant positive correlation was seen between percentage of blasts expressing TCL1 and LAIR-1 mean fluorescence intensity (r=0.566, P=0.044). According to Cox regression analysis, the percentage of blasts expressing NF-κB was seen to significantly increase the risk of death, in childhood ALL (hazard ratio=1.085, 95% confidence interval=1.02-1.16, P=0.01). Conclusion LAIR-1 expression carries the potentiality of being a bad prognostic marker in childhood ALL. A relation is suggested between the expression of both LAIR-1 and TCL1 on blasts. NF-κB expression might negatively influence the survival rate in childhood ALL.