Expression of metallothionein (MT) and gluthatione s-transferase pi (SGTP) in the bone marrow of patients with myeloproliferative disorders (MPD).

Overexpression of SGTP and/or MT may contribute to various carcinogenic processes and to resistance to anticancer treatment. The importance of these proteins, although clearly established in solid tumours, has not been fully understood in haematopoietic neoplasm. The aim of this study was to determine the expression of MT and SGTP in the bone marrow of patients with MPD. Twenty paraffin-embedded bone marrow core biopsy specimens from newly diagnosed patients with MPD were evaluated -- osteomyelofibrosis (OMF), n = 9 and chronic myelocytic leukaemia (CML), n = 11. We demonstrate increased SGTP and MT expression in the bone marrow of MPD patients. In our study levels of MT in OMF patients were higher than in CML. This suggests that MT expression may correlate with bone marrow fibrosis. These data, although based on a relatively small number of patients, raise the possibility that SGTP and MT may play a role in the pathogenesis of MPD. The clinical significance of this phenomenon needs further investigation.