Journal Article

CXCL13 plasma levels function as a biomarker for disease activity in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Estrov, Zeev, Ferrajoli, Alessandra, Jain, Nitin, Sivina, Mariela, Huang, Xuelin, Kim, Ekaterina, Vaca, Alicia, Xiao, Lianchun, Wierda, William G., Burger, Jan A., Chiorazzi, Nicholas, Chen, Shih-Shih, Keating, Michael J.

2021

Overview

The chemoattractant CXCL13 organizes the cellular architecture of B-cell follicles and germinal centers. During adaptive immune responses, CXCL13 plasma concentrations transiently increase and function as a biomarker for normal germinal center activity. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells express high levels of CXCR5, the receptor for CXCL13, and proliferate in pseudofollicles within secondary lymphoid organs (SLO). Given the morphologic and functional similarities between normal and CLL B-cell expansion in SLO, we hypothesized that CXCL13 plasma concentrations would correlate with CLL disease activity and progression. We analyzed CXCL13 plasma concentrations in 400 CLL patients and correlated the findings with other prognostic markers, time to treatment (TTT), CCL3 and CCL4 plasma concentrations, and in vivo CLL cell proliferation. We found that CXCL13 plasma concentrations were higher in CLL patients with active and advanced stage disease, resulting in a significantly shorter TTT. Accordingly, high CXCL13 levels correlated with other markers of disease activity and CCL3 levels. Higher CLL cell birth rates in vivo also associated with higher CXCL13 plasma concentrations. Interestingly, elevated CXCL13 plasma levels normalized during ibrutinib therapy, and increased in ibrutinib resistance patients. Collectively, these studies emphasize the importance of CXCL13 in crosstalk between CLL cells and the SLO microenvironment.

• Publisher: Nature Publishing Group UK,Nature Publishing Group
• Subject: 13/21 / 13/31 / 631/67/1990/283/1895 / 631/67/327 / Adaptive immunity / Adenine - analogs & derivatives / Adenine - therapeutic use / Aged / Biomarkers / Biomarkers, Tumor - blood / Cancer Research / Care and treatment / CCL3 protein / Cell proliferation / Chemokine CXCL13 - blood / Chronic lymphocytic leukemia / Critical Care Medicine / Crosstalk / CXCL13 protein / CXCR5 protein / Cytokines / Development and progression / Female / Follicles / Follow-Up Studies / Gene expression / Genetic aspects / Germinal centers / Health aspects / Hematology / Humans / Immune response / Inhibitor drugs / Intensive / Internal Medicine / Leukemia / Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell - blood / Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell - drug therapy / Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell - pathology / Lymphatic leukemia / Lymphocytes B / Male / Medicine / Medicine & Public Health / Microenvironments / Oncology / Organs / Piperidines - therapeutic use / Plasma / Plasma levels / Prognosis / Retrospective Studies / Severity of Illness Index / Survival Rate / Targeted cancer therapy