Elevated β-arrestin1 expression correlated with risk stratification in acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the main subtype of childhood leukemia. Risk stratification is pivotal for ALL prognosis and individualized therapy. The current factors for risk stratification include clinical and laboratory features, cytogenetic characteristics of the blast, early response to chemotherapy, and genetic factors. Analyses of gene expression are becoming increasingly important in ALL risk stratification. β-Arrestin1, a multifunctional scaffold protein mediating many intracellular signaling networks, has been shown to be involved in many tumors. However, little is known of β-arrestin1 in leukemia. In this study, we found that β-arrestin1 was significantly elevated in 155 newly diagnosed ALL patients, compared with 51 controls. Further analysis showed that β-arrestin1 expression was positively related with risk classification and white blood cell count in ALL. Moreover, expression of Notch1, an essential gene for developing hematological cells and T-ALL, was found to be negatively correlated with β-arrestin1 in ALL. In conclusion, β-arrestin1 may be a useful predictor of risk stratification and prognosis of ALL, and thus of potential use in the design of individualized therapy strategies.