Retroviral integration site analysis identifies ICSBP as a collaborating tumor suppressor gene in NUP98-TOP1-induced leukemia

Introduction The NUP98-TOP1 fusion gene is one of 18 distinct translocations identified in acute myeloid leukemia involving the N-terminal portion of the nucleoporin NUP98. We previously reported that expression of NUP98-TOP in murine bone marrow induces a lethal, transplantable leukemia. However, the long latency suggests the in vivo acquisition of additional mutations and/or time required for clonal outgrowth of rare transformed cells arising from the collaboration of NUP98-TOP1 and a cooperating event. The aim of this study was to test whether retroviral insertional mutagenesis contributes to disease onset and whether integration site analysis can identify collaborating genes. Methods The genomic sites of retroviral integration in NUP98-TOP1-induced leukemic mice were analyzed. This screen identified a proviral integration that disrupts expression of the Interferon consensus sequence binding protein (ICSBP) tumor suppressor gene. Intriguingly, an ICSBP deficiency induces a chronic myeloid leukemia–like disease in mice and its reduced expression has been observed in several human leukemias. To ascertain whether an ISCBP deficiency collaborates with NUP98-TOP1 in leukemogenesis, we expressed NUP98-TOP1 in ICSBP−/− bone marrow. Results The in vivo myeloproliferation induced by NUP98-TOP1 was markedly exaggerated with the ICSBP−/− deficiency. Moreover, NUP98-TOP1/ICSBP−/− mice had a reduced survival compared with NUP98-TOP1/ICSBP+/+ mice. Conclusion These results reveal the novel finding of collaboration between the ICSBP tumor suppressor gene and NUP98-TOP1 in leukemogenesis. Moreover they further illustrate the power of retroviral integration site analysis for identifying novel cooperating tumor suppressor genes.