Expression data from multiple myeloma plasma cells and mesenchymal stem cells before and after co-culture

To understand how interactions of myeloma cells with osteoclasts and mesenchymal stem cells in the bone marrow affect the clinical course of myeloma, we used microarrays to study changes in gene expression in freshly isolated myeloma plasma cells following co-cultures with osteoclasts (8 experiments) or with mesenchymal stem cells (13 experiments). Interaction with osteoclasts induced changes in the expression of 675 genes, and interaction with mesenchymal stem cells induced changes in the expression of 296 genes. Expression of only 58 genes commonly and similarly changed in both co-culture systems. Among these, we identified genes associated with overall, progression-free, and post-relapse survival, and developed survival prediction models. Gene expression data from 347 patients treated with total therapy 2 protocol, 433 with total therapy 3, and 98 patients who received various treatments (91 of them high-dose therapy with autologous stem cell support) were used for the analysis. Good predictive models were developed only for post-relapse survival, using genes involved in interaction with osteoclasts or with mesenchymal stem cells. The best predictive model used expression of first relapse of 33 probesets whose expression changed in myeloma cells following interaction with osteoclasts, with hazard ratios of 24, 20, and 12 for patients who relapsed following total therapy 2, total therapy 3 and the various other treatments, respectively. Among the probesets used for prediction, only 10, representing 8 genes, were commonly changed after both co-culture systems. These could present favorable target for therapy.

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