MiR-150 Expression in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia: Relation to Imatinib Response

OBJECTIVE: To assess the circulating micro-RNA-150 (miR-150) expression in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) in relation to imatinib response. METHODS: Sixty patients with CML and 20 age- and sex-matched control subjects were enrolled. Circulating miR-150 levels were assessed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction on days 0, 14, and 90 of imatinib therapy for patients and once for control subjects. RESULTS: The baseline miR-150 expression was significantly lower in patients with CML than in control subjects with subsequent elevation at 14 and 90 days after the start of imatinib treatment. Early treatment response (ETR) at 90 days was the main study outcome. The miR-150 expression had a significantly higher level in patients with CML with ETR. On multivariate analysis, miR-150 on day 14 was significantly related to ETR in patients with CML with predictive efficacy (area under the curve = 0.838, 72.9% sensitivity, and 84.2% specificity). CONCLUSION: We found that miR-150 expression on day 14 of imatinib treatment is a useful early predictive candidate for imatinib response in patients with CML.