Objective: To establish a stable, rapid multiplex PCR assay combined with PAGE gel electrophoresis for simultaneously detecting FLT3-ITD and NPM1 mutations in acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
Methods: Capillary electrophoresis (CE) and PAGE gel electrophoresis were simultaneously used to analyze FLT3-ITD and NPM1 mutations in 117 de novo AML patients with normal cytogenetic findings.
Results: For certain mutations, the length of mutated double-stranded DNA is longer than wild-type DNA. Since FLT3-mut (420 bp) is longer than FLT3-wt (327-332 bp), and NPM1-mut (172 bp) is longer than NPM1-wt (168 bp), heteroduplex will move more slowly during PAGE gel electrophoresis than homoduplex. Therefore the mutations may be detected. A total of 117 CN-AML patients were analyzed with CE and PAGE gel electrophoresis, and the results were identical, which included 18 (15.4%) patients with FLT3-ITD+/NPM1-, 19 (16.2%) patients with FLT3-ITD+/NPM1+, 25 (21.4%) patients with FLT3-ITD-/NPM1+, and 55 (47.0%) patients with FLT3-ITD-/NPM1-.
Conclusion: Both types of electrophoresis assays may provide a rapid and handy assay for simultaneous detection of FLT3-ITD and NPM1 mutations. CE is relatively sensitive, stable; while PAGE electrophoresis is relatively simple, cheap, and reliable, which may be suitable for primary hospitals and preliminary screening.