This observation, together with our findings that α-KG could regulate c-Myc expression, suggests a possibility that c-Myc and wt-IDH2 could form a positive feedback loop to promote leukemia development: C-MYC enhances the expression of IDH2, which converts α-KG to isocitrate and thus maintains cellular α-KG at low level. This evidence concerns the gene MYC and leukemia.