These studies suggest that a t(9;14)(p21;q32) chromosomal translocation can result in deletion of both p16 INK4A and p15 INK4B genes in pre-B ALL, and that the JKB2 cell line therefore provides a model for the study of leukemogenesis related to abnormalities in chromosome 9p2l.
These results demonstrate that CDK4I gene deletions are very frequent and probably early events in childhood acute leukaemias of lymphoid origin and especially in early-T and pre-B ALLs.