Loss Of Heterozygosity 12, Chromosomal Region 1 (LOH12CR1)

Loss of heterozygosity of the short arm of chromosome 12 is a frequent event in a wide range of haematological malignancies and solid tumours. In previous studies, the shortest commonly deleted region was delimited to a 750-kb interval, defined by the markers D12S89 and D12S358, in pre-B acute lymphoblastic leukaemia patients, suggesting the presence of a tumour suppressor locus.

The products encoded by the three new genes, LOH1CR12, LOH2CR12 and LOH3CR12, have no clear homology to known proteins. The gene predictions were all confirmed by expression analysis using RT-PCR and Northern blot. This transcriptional map is a crucial step toward the identification of the tumour suppressor gene at 12p12.