Multidrug resistance protein expression of adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma

In adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL), it is difficult to achieve remission and the reason for the resistance to chemotherapeutic agents may be linked to the presence of multidrug resistance (MDR) proteins. Lung resistance-related protein (LRP), multidrug resistance-associated protein and P-glycoprotein are three MDR proteins which we examined in ATL cells using multiparametric flow cytometry and real-time RT-PCR. LRP was highly expressed and suppressing LRP function increased doxorubicin accumulation in nuclei. This indicates LRP may be contributing to drug resistance in ATL patients, and the suppression of LRP function could be a new strategy for ATL treatment.