Impact of 06-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation and MGMT expression on dacarbazine resistance of Hodgkin's lymphoma cells

We analyzed the methylation status of the 06-methylguanine-DNAmethyltransferase (MGMT) promoter and mRNA expression in HL cells and assessed the response of these cells to dacarbazine. Expression of MGMT correlated with the presence of non-methylated promoters and cell lines with non-methylated promoters showed increased resistance against dacarbazine. KM-H2 cells expressed fusion transcripts between MGMT and proline-rich coiled-coil 2B (PRRC2B) but no wild type MGMT transcripts. Dacarbazine sensitivity suggested that fusion transcripts are translated into a protein with reduced functionality. MGMT promoter methylation predicts dacarbazine sensitivity of HL cells and it might be interesting to analyze this factor in HL patients. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.