Quantitative assay for the detection of the V617F variant in the Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) gene using the Luminex xMAP technology

BACKGROUND: The availability of clinically valid biomarkers contribute to improve the diagnosis and clinical management of diseases. A valine-to-phenylalanine substitution at position 617 (V617F) in the Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) gene has been recently associated with key signaling abnormalities in the transduction of haemopoietic growth-factor receptors and is now considered as a useful clinical marker of myeloproliferative neoplasms. Several methods have recently been reported to detect the JAK2 V617F point mutation and show variable sensitivity. METHODS: Using the Luminex xMAP technology, we developed a quantitative assay to detect the JAK2V617F variant. The method was based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by hybridization to specific probes coupled with internally dyed microspheres. The assay comprises 3 steps: genomic DNA extraction, end point PCR reaction, direct hybridization of PCR fragments and quantification. It has been tested with different sources of nucleic acid. RESULTS: Applied to whole blood samples, this quantitative assay showed a limit of detection of 2%. A highly sensitive allele-specific primer extension reaction performed in parallel allowed to validate the results and to identify the specimens with values below 2%. CONCLUSION: Direct hybridization assay using the Luminex xMAP technology allows sensitive quantification of JAK2V617F from blood spots. It is simple and can be easily performed in a clinical setting.