LMP1 expression in bone marrow trephines of patients with multiple myeloma confers a survival advantage

Abstract

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a heterogeneous disease of the bone marrow (BM). Its association with Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) remains enigmatic. Aim of our study was to determine expression of latent membrane protein 1 (LMP1), aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 (ALDH1), CD117 and their association with 5-year survival in MM patients. Seven percent of cases expressed LMP1 in MM cells with no association with survival. Whereas, LMP1 expression in CD138- non-neoplastic cells was observed in 80% of the cases, conferring a survival advantage of 1.75 years (mean 3.75 ± 0.28, 95% CI 3.19–4.3). LMP1 in CD138- non-neoplastic cells was associated with CD117 expression in MM cells. Combinatorial analysis of LMP1 and CD117 stratified patients into good prognostic group LMP1+/CD117- (mean survival 4.16 ± 0.39 years) and a worst prognostic group; LMP1-/CD117+ (mean survival 1.02 ± 0.29 years). Our study showed that LMP1 expression in CD138- non-neoplastic cells of BM in MM patients confers a survival advantage.

Keywords:

• LMP1
• multiple myeloma
• stem cell markers

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the contributions of the following individuals: Dr. Nazia Riaz for her constant support and assistance in software application, Sadia Habib for technical assistance, Dr. Afsar Mian for critically reviewing the manuscript and generosity of several donors for partial funding support toward this project.

Potential conflict of interest

Disclosure forms provided by the authors are available with the full text of this article online at http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10428194.2018.1563697