However, when dexamethasone was administered in the BIM-deficient or Puma-deficient mice, the observed reductions of thymocytes and immature B-cells were significantly lower, indicating that pro-apoptotic members of the Bcl-2 family BIM and Puma are critical in the glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis of ALL cells [47]. Here, BBC3 is linked to acute lymphoblastic leukemia.