No evidence on infectious DNA-based agents in pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia using whole metagenome shotgun sequencing

Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2024 Jun 21:14:1355787. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1355787. eCollection 2024.

Abstract

The etiology of pediatric acute lymphatic leukemia (ALL) is still unclear. Whole-metagenome shotgun sequencing of bone marrow samples in patients with treatment-naïve ALL (n=6) was performed for untargeted investigation of bacterial and viral DNA. The control group consisted of healthy children (n=4) and children with non-oncologic diseases (n=2) undergoing bone marrow sampling. Peripheral blood of all participants was investigated at the same time. After bioinformatical elimination of potential contaminants by comparison with the employed controls, no significant amounts of microbial or viral DNA were identified.

Keywords: ALL; high-throughput sequencing; infectious etiology; microbiome; shotgun sequencing.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Bacteria / classification
  • Bacteria / genetics
  • Bacteria / isolation & purification
  • Bone Marrow
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • DNA, Bacterial / genetics
  • DNA, Viral* / genetics
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Metagenome*
  • Metagenomics / methods
  • Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma*
  • Sequence Analysis, DNA

Substances

  • DNA, Viral
  • DNA, Bacterial

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. Sequencing of blood and bone marrow samples was performed and funded by the Noscendo GmbH, Königstr. 34, 47198 Duisburg, Germany. We kindly acknowledge the support by the “Stiftung für krebskranke Kinder Tübingen e.V.” and the Open Access Publishing Fund of University of Tübingen.