INTRODUCTION The critical role of the activity of the nucleophosmin- anaplastic lymphoma kinase (NPM-ALK) fusion protein in anaplastic large-cell lymphoma prompted drug discovery programs directed against ALK. Drug discovery efforts increased after finding that about 4% of non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) possess an EML4-ALK fusion protein. AREAS COVERED The author provides a review of th...

Anaplastic large cell lymphomas (ALCL) are frequently associated with the t(2;5)(p23;q35). This translocation fuses the nucleophosmin (NPM) gene at 5q35, which encodes a nucleolar protein involved in shuttling ribonucleoproteins from the cytoplasm to the nucleus, to the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene at 2p23, encoding a tyrosine kinase receptor. In this report, we describe a typical case...

Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphomas (ALCLs) carry translocations in which the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene is juxtaposed to various genes, the most common of which is the NPM/B23 gene. ALK fusion proteins result in the constitutive activation of ALK tyrosine kinase, thereby enhancing proliferation and increasing cell survival. A direct role for NPM-ALK in cellular transformation has been s...

In the last few years it has been demonstrated that approximately 4% of non-small-cell lung cancer is driven by an ALK gene rearrangement. When such a rearrangement occurs an oncogene addicted state appears to then exist within the cancer cell. Crizotinib, an anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) tyrosine kinase inhibitor, is effective in preclinical models of ALK-rearranged lung cancer, and has dem...

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) is a tyrosine kinase receptor involved in both solid and hematological tumors. About 80% of ALK-positive anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL) cases are characterized by the t(2;5)(p23;q35) translocation, encoding for the aberrant fusion protein nucleophosmin (NPM)-ALK, whereas 5% of non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients carry the inv(2)(p21;p23) rearrange...

Nucleophosmin-anaplastic lymphoma kinase-expressing (NPM-ALK+ ) T-cell lymphoma is an aggressive neoplasm that is more commonly seen in children and young adults. The pathogenesis of NPM-ALK+ T-cell lymphoma is not completely understood. Wild-type ALK is a receptor tyrosine kinase that is physiologically expressed in neural tissues during early stages of human development, which suggests that A...

The echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4 (EML4)-anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) fusion oncogene represents a molecular target in a small subset of non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs). This fusion leads to constitutive ALK activation with potent transforming activity. In a pivotal phase 1 clinical trial, the ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) crizotinib (PF-02341066) demonstrated ...

OBJECTIVE The relationship between anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) expression in malignant pleural effusion (MPE) samples detected only by Ventana immunohistochemistry (IHC) ALK (D5F3) and the efficacy of ALK-tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy is uncertain. METHODS Ventana anti-ALK (D5F3) rabbit monoclonal primary antibody testing was performed on 313 cell blocks of MPE samples from Chinese p...

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) rearrangement responds to ALK tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in lung cancer. Many cases ultimately acquire resistance to crizotinib. Resistance, including ALK-dominant or ALK non-dominant, mechanisms have been described. Transformation to small-cell lung cancer is rare. Herein, we report a 49-year-old man diagnosed with adenocarcinoma, who was negative for EG...

Though evidence is mounting that a major function of sleep is to maintain brain plasticity and consolidate memory, little is known about the molecular pathways by which learning and sleep processes intercept. Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (Alk), the gene encoding a tyrosine receptor kinase whose inadvertent activation is the cause of many cancers, is implicated in synapse formation and cognitive f...