IDO1 and PLXNC1 Genes Expression in Adult Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Background: IDO1 play a critical part in weakening the body's natural defenses against cancer and promoting tumor resistance., Although PLXNC1 shows aberrant expression in many human malignancies, its role in cancer progression is complex, as it can function as both an enhancer and an inhibitor.
Objectives: To investigate the expression levels of IDO1 and PLXNC1 genes in newly diagnosed adult patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and examined their correlation with various clinical aspects of the disease.
Methods: This case–control study included 44 participants Group I included 32 newly diagnosed adult AML patients and group II included 12 ages and gender- matched apparently healthy controls. The expression of IDO1 and PLXNC1 genes was determined using Quantitative reverse transcriptase PCR (qRT-PCR).
Results: IDO1 gene expression was significantly higher in AML patients compared to healthy controls (P = 0.010) while PLXNC1 expression levels were significantly lower in AML patients compared to healthy controls (P = 0.005). A significant inverse correlation was observed between PLXNC1 expression and initial leukocyte count (P = 0.024) while IDO1 expression showed a significant inverse correlation with hemoglobin (P = 0.007) and WBC count (P = 0.025). other clinic pathological features did not show any significant correlations in our analysis.
Conclusion: IDO1 expression was significantly upregulated while PLXNC1 expression was significantly downregulated in AML patients compared to healthy controls, suggesting IDO1 and PLXNC1 may play a role in AML pathogenesis and could act as potential biomarkers for tracking disease progression and predicting prognosis.