Leukemia

Leukemia is a disease where abnormal blood cells are produced, making it difficult for healthy cells to function properly. Inherited mutations are not a common cause of leukemia, as most DNA changes occur during a person's lifetime. These changes can be caused by factors like radiation or chemicals, but sometimes they happen randomly. Leukemia is caused by translocation mutations, where parts of chromosomes are exchanged. Certain genes, like MYC and ABL, are involved in the development of leukemia. Alan and I are doing a research project on leukemia for an NCB 150 class, and we are wondering if you guys have any specific knowledge about leukemia. Certainly. In leukemia patients, the bone marrow produces large amounts of abnormal blood cells, which makes it hard for healthy cells to do their important job. Some people with certain types of cancer have inherited DNA mutations from a parent that can increase their risk to the disease. However, inherited mutations are not a common cause of leukemia. Most DNA changes related to leukemia occur during a person's lifetime, rather than having been inherited before birth. Some of these acquired changes can have outside causes, like radiation or cancer-causing chemicals, but in most cases, the real reason they occur isn't completely clear. Many of these gene changes are probably just random events that sometimes happen inside a cell without having an outside cause. In terms of specific mutations involving this cancer, leukemia is caused by translocation mutations, which is a chromosomal-level mutation, where six hints of non-homologous chromosomes are exchanged. Molecular biologist Mark Green discovered that the MYC gene, which encodes a transcription factor, is amplified in human leukemia. A specific leukemia, chronic myelogic leukemia, or abbreviated as PML, was discovered by Peter Nowell, which is correlated to shortened chromosomes, which is a result of chromosome translocation between chromosomes 9 and 22. This activates a proto-oncogene, ABL, in an unusual way, because BCR and ABL fuse to make an oncogene, and the fusion protein, whose overactivity leads to leukemia.