Role of the B-cell receptor and the microenvironment in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

Abstract

Despite significant progress in treatment, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) remains an incurable disease. Advances have been made to understand the molecular pathogenesis underlying CLL progression and treatment resistance. We here review the available evidences concerning the role of the B-cell receptor (BCR) and the tumor microenvironment interactions in CLL pathogenesis. Antigen likely has a key role in the selection of the tumoral clone, the mutational status of immunoglobulin genes is a strong prognostic predictor and BCR signaling has been postulated to have a role for CLL trafficking and interaction with the stromal microenvironment. There is also important evidence, favoring a role for the microenvironment in CLL pathogenesis. Most, if not all, proliferative events occur in the lymph nodes and bone marrow, where leukemic cells receive through microenvironment interactions survival signals aiming to avoid apoptosis and acquire favorable tumoral growing conditions. In addition, the tumoral microenvironment appears to be the site where the acquisition of additional genetic lesions in the clone occur, which should greatly influence clinical outcome. The advent of new tyrosine kinase inhibitors which seem to be able to modulate microenvironment interactions and circumvent the p53 deletion have generated significant promise by raising the possibility that they could provide significant progress in disease treatment. © 2013 Macmillan Publishers Limited.