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The Arrow Bone Marrow Transplant Foundation

On October 11th 2010, the Light the Night Benefit Concert raised funds to support a promising new leukaemia research project titled Gene Control in Acute Leukaemia.

The research is being undertaken by St Vincent Hospital's Haemotology Research Team at Darlinghurst, Sydney. The 2010 Light the Night benefit concert raised $20,000 to support the ongoing project which aims to examine how genes called microRNAs may promote cell growth and inhibit maturation of bone marrow stem cells leading to the development of acute leukaemia.

MicroRNAs are newly discovered small genes that regulate vital cellular functions and have been found to be involved in the development of prostate and bowel cancers. This research aims to provide a better understanding of the biology of acute leukaemia and, in turn, may lead to the discovery of new tests and drugs to develop a cure for patients. Recent research in acute leukaemia has discovered that acquired gene changes, known as mutations, can lead to excessive cell growth or inhibit normal cell maturation resulting in bone marrow failure and death. However, these mutations only provide part explanation of the leukemic process. This shortcoming represents a significant gap in our understanding of acute leukaemia.

This current research is the result of research in the last two years (also supported by Light the Night) whereby genetic profiling of acute leukaemia using gene chip technology identified several microRNAs that are linked with unique subtypes of acute leukaemia. researchers aim to examine how these tiny genes may promote cell growth and inhibit maturation of bone marrow stem cells leading to the development of acute leukaemia.