14q+ marker chromosomes in multiple myeloma and plasma-cell leukaemia

14q+ in Ph-positive chronic myelogenous leukemia

Two cases of chronic myelogenous leukemia with a Ph translocation and an additional chromosome change of the long arm of a chromosome #14 (14q+) are reported. The breakpoints on chromosome #14 were identified as 14q24 and 14q32, respectively. One of the patients did not show any evidence of blastic transformation; the other patient developed a myeloid blastic crisis when the abnormal 14q+ was seen in the bone marrow cells.

High incidence of chromosome abnormalities in IgG3 myeloma

Chromosomes were studied in 33 untreated myeloma patients, and results were correlated with the class of Ig secreted by the myeloma cells. A high incidence of clonal karyotypic anomalies seemed to be present in IgG3 myeloma patients, in whom the disease was advanced at diagnosis and rapidly progressing. Among the chromosome anomalies, the t(11;14)(q14;q32) was particularly prominent, and this chromosome anomaly, in analogy with the Ph1 chromosome, may characterize a family of lymphoproliferative disorders.

Karyotype analysis of B-lymphocytes transformed by Epstein-Barr virus in 21 patients with B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia

The karyotypes of 21 patients with chronic B cell leukemia were studied using lymphoblastoid cell lines obtained with the aid of the Epstein-Barr virus. Ten patients had a normal karyotype and eleven patients, an abnormal. There is no single characteristic anomaly, but certain types were more frequent, i.e., 14q+ as a result of a translocation 11;14, trisomy 12, and an isochromosome 17q. Abnormalities in these same three chromosomes have been found in other hematologic malignancies. It is postulated that loci with control cell proliferation are present on chromosomes 12, 14, and 17.

Childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia associated with an unusual 8;14 translocation

An 8;14 chromosome translocation with the break points t(8;14(q11;q32) is described in bone marrow cells of a patient with null cell terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The patient, who is dysmorphic and mentally retarded, ha a normal 46,XY constitutional chromosome karyotype. A review of the more usual cytogenetic findings in this type of leukemia and a comparison of B-cell lymphoproliferative cytogenetic associations are presented.

Chromosomes and causation of human cancer and leukemia. XLV. Chromosome patterns in stimulated lymphocytes of chronic lymphocytic leukemia

In the present study the B-cell mitogens from Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and lipopolysaccharide-B from E. coli (LPS) were used to stimulate the blood cells of 27 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) to undergo mitosis. In 14 CLL cases EBV was used as the only mitotic stimulant and in 5 cases both EBV and LPS. In 8 cases neither EBV nor LPS caused mitotic cells to appear. In 9 cases the cells were characterized by abnormal clones, including 5 cases with +12 (including 1 case with a possible Philadelphia chromosome), 2 cases with 14q+ and 1 case with an i(17q). No correlation was found between the types of surface membrane immunoglobulins and the chromosome abnormalities in the leukemic lymphocytes. The effects of EBV on normal lymphocytes were also investigated and found to be nonspecific (e.g., tetraploidy), although in every case EBV caused a definite increase in the mitotic index. The results indicate that 1) EBV and LPS stimulate leukemic cells of CLL to undergo mitosis, 2) about 50% of the patients have clonal abnormalities in the leukemic cells, and 3) CLL is associated with karyotypic changes seen in lymphoma (14q+), although the most common anomaly in our material was a +12.

New complex Ph' translocation t (10; 14; 22) in bone marrow cells and in PHA-stimulated peripheral blood cultures in chronic myelocytic leukaemia

A patient with chronic myelocytic leukaemia (CML) and a new complex Philadelphia chromosome (Ph') translocation, t (10; 14; 22), is described. This three way Ph' translocation not involving chromosome 9 was present in the majority of the bone marrow cells, as well as in a great proportion of metaphases from phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) stimulated peripheral blood cultures. The possibility that the Ph' translocation was present also in lymphocytes is discussed and at this regard the involvement of chromosome 14 is of interest considering the documented non random involvement of chromosome 14 in lymphoid malignancies.

The chromosome changes in non-Burkitt lymphomas

Cytogenetic analysis of 26 non-Burkitt lymphomas having abnormal clones, revealed non-random involvement of certain chromosomes in numerical and structural changes. In some cases, chromosome structural abnormalities could be correlated with histopathology of the tumours. A combined analysis of cases in the present series, and from the literature, indicates that the most common aberrations in the lymphoproliferative disorders involve structural changes of chromosome 14.

2 translocations, t(11;14) and t(1;6), in a patient with plasma cell leukaemia and 2 populations of plasma cells

2 translocations, t(11;14) and t(1;6), were found in 24 out of 46 metaphases in bone marrow cells from an untreated patient with plasma cell leukaemia. The predominating cell population produced only kappa chains while a minute population produced IgG kappa. All serum Ig's were low and only minimal amounts of monoclonal IgG kappa were found in the serum and very small amounts of kappa light chains in the urine. Analyses of ours and 2 other reported patients indicated the possibility that the location of breakpoints on the chromosomes may be of etiologic importance for the type of light chain and perhaps for the class of heavy chain.

Nonrandom chromosome changes involving the Ig gene-carrying chromosomes 12 and 6 in pristane-induced mouse plasmacytomas

The karyotypes of pristane-induced mouse plasmacytomas were studied by G banding. Only primary tumors or early passage generations were analyzed. In contrast to murine T cell leukemias that showed a regular trisomy of chromosome 15, all plasmacytomas showed a consistent translocation of the distal part of chromosome 15 to either chromosome 6 [rcpT(6;15)] or 12 [T(12;15)]. The specific breakpoints were at 6C, 15D3/E ro D2/3 and 12F2. Early passage generations often showed a mixed population with two different translocations, suggesting polyclonal origin. Considered together with the known karyotypic features of murine and human lymphomas, these findings support the theory that the nonrandom chromosomal changes in lymphoproliferative malignancies are associated with the type of the target cell, rather than with the etiological agent. Moreover, the involvement of the chromosomes known to carry the heavy chain (12) and the light chain (6) determinants, respectively, raises the question of whether the translocations may be related to the DNA level rearrangements known to occur during the differentiation of normal plasma cells.

Establishment and characterization of human B-lymphocytic lymphoma cell lines (BALM-3, -4 and -5); intraclonal variation in the B-cell differentiation stage

This study describes the establishment of three non-Burkitt B-lymphoma cell lines (BALM-3, BALM-4 and BALM-5) originating from the pleural effusion of a patient with a poorly differentiated diffuse lymphocytic lymphoma. The cells of BALM-3, -4 and -5 exhibited a number of properties which distinguish them from the usual B-cell type lymphoblastoid cell lines. Thus, they lacked the Epstein-Barr virus genome and had abnormal chromosome constitutions including a 14q+ marker. The presence of the identical surface immunoglobulin isotypes (gamma and chi chain determinants), and Ia-like B-cell-associated antigen in the cultured cells and in the "fresh" lymphoma cells in vivo was demonstrated. These findings strongly suggested that these cell lines have B-cell characteristics and were derived from the original tumor cell population. BALM-5 cells, however, showed somewhat different growth, cell surface marker profile and functional characteristics compared to those of BALM-3, and -4 cells. These variations suggest that the BALM-5 cells were probably at different stages of B-cell maturation than those of BALM-3 and -4, even though all three cell lines (established in three separate flasks) originated from the cells of the same pleural effusion of a lymphoma with monoclonal B-cell characteristics.

Karyotypic abnormalities and clinical aspects of patients with multiple myeloma and related paraproteinemic disorders

Karyotypic abnormalities were detected in the malignant cells of 6 of 18 patients with multiple myeloma (MM). Six patients with benign monoclonal gammopathy, one with amyloidosis of immunoglobulin origin, and two with Waldenström's macroglobulinemia had normal karyotypes. All six MM patients with aneuploidy were in a group of 10 patients in an accelerated or relapse phase of their disease and four had high serum paraprotein levels (7.92, 6.24, 6.80, and 4.24 g/dl, respectively) when their abnormal karyotypes were detected. Five of the 6 MM patients with aneuploidy had received prior chemotherapy. Aneuploidy was not observed in 8 stable MM patients. Abnormalities of chromosome 14 were present in all 6 patients, with a 14q+ marker in 5 and loss of No. 14 in 1. A translocation between Nos. 11 and 14 was found in aneuploid cells of 2 patients who had plasma cell leukemia (PCL). However, the break point in the long arm of No. 11 differed in the 2 patients. A gain of Nos. 5, 9, and 11 was seen in 3 patients, a gain of No 1 in 2, and rearrangements of No. 1 in 5 MM patients, including all 4 who had a 14q+ marker chromosome initially. A deletion of chromosome 6 at band q25 was detected in 2 MM patients and a pericentric inversion of No. 6 (6p21 to 6q13) was seen in the patient with PCL. Three of 4 MM patients had a nonrandom loss of one chromosome 8. Two other MM patients, who were treated with melphalan and prednisone, developed acute nonlymphocytic leukemia (ANLL) 2+ and 4+ years after the diagnosis of MM. Marrow cells of one patient showed a 5q- chromosome and a constitutional translocation involving Nos. 13 and 14 during the preleukemic stage; during the leukemic phase, the karyotype evolved to 50 chromosomes including extra chromosomes 1, 6, 8, 10, and 21 and a missing 7, in addition to the originally detected 5q- and the 13/14 translocation. The peripheral blood from the other patient was hypodiploid, with a missing chromosome 7 and a translocation between 3q and 9p. These patterns of chromosome change resemble those of ANLL rather than MM and are similar to the changes seen in ANLL after treated malignant lymphoma.

DNA repair defects and chromosome instability disorders

Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), Fanconi anaemia (FA), ataxia telangiectasia (AT) and Bloom disease (BS) are four rare autosomal recessive disorders in which there is defective DNA repair and/or chromosome instability and proneness to malignancy. Between 80 and 90% of patients with XP have a defect, demonstrable at cell level, of excision of DNA lesions induced by ultraviolet rays, while the remainder have a cellular error of post-replication repair. XP cells are also deficient in repairing DNA damage caused by a variety of chemical mutagens. There are at least five different complementation groups of the first, or classical, type of XP (A to D, etc.) Apparently group C patients, as well as those with defective post-replication repair, do not show the progressive neurological illness found in a proportion of the other patients. AT is heterogeneous clinically and genetically. Clinically it presents with a progressive neurological illness, progressive telangiectases and a developmental disorder of the thymus. AT is characterized by sensitivity to X-rays and AT cells are unable to repair gamma-ray-induced damage to bases in the DNA. It appears that in many cases of the disorder a chromosomally marked cellular clone is found. In BS the main defect, which results in growth retardation, sun-induced lesions of the face and susceptibility to infection, appears to be a slow DNA chain maturation during DNA synthesis. An increase of sister chromatid exchanges is characteristically seen in the chromosomes of cultured BS cells. In FA, in which there is progressive pancytopenia with eventual bone marrow exhaustion and a tendency to haemorrhage and infection, the cellular defect seems to consist of faulty removal of repair of cross-links in the DNA. In this condition, as in BS and AT, various structural chromosome changes are detected in cultured cells. Patients with XP develop skin cancers in early life and often maligant melanomas. In the other three disorders, in which an immune deficiency is often present, leukaemia and related proliferative disorders are a frequent cause of death while other malignancies also occur. There is some evidence that points to an increased risk of malignancy in heterozygotes who carry the FA and AT genes.

14q+ marker chromosome in an EBV-genome-negative lymph node without signs of malignancy in a patient with EBV-genome-positive nasopharyngeal carcinoma

In a patient with an EBV-genome-positive nasopharyngeal carcinoma, an EBV-genome-negative inguinal lymph node without histological evidence of malignant lymphoma or metastatic carcinoma growth was found to contain a 14q+ marker chromosome, identified as an 8;14 translocation, in all cells analyzed. This observation indicates that chromosome aberrations may precede histological signs of malignancy. The possible implication of this finding in relation to the postulated role of the 14q+ marker and lymphoma development is discussed.

Chromosomes and causation of human cancer and leukemia: XXXVI. The 14q+ anomaly in an American Burkitt lymphoma and its value in the definition of lymphoproliferative disorders

A case of a 10-year-old boy with American Burkitt lymphoma is presented in whom a 14q+ due to t(8;14)(q23;q32) was shown to exist in the ascitic lymphoma cells. This appears to be the first demonstration of such a translocation in uncultured material. In addition, another translocation involving the X chromosome, hitherto not observed in Burkitt tumors, was demonstrated. The karyotypic findings have been related to the cytogenetic experience in Burkitt and other lymphomas, with emphasis being put on the importance of the 14q+ anomaly in lymphoproliferative diseases.

Significance of 14q translocations in non-Hodgkin lymphomas

Chromosome studies were performed on malignant cells obtained from 22 patients with non-Hodgkin lymphomas. A marker chromosome resulting from a translocation that affected the long arm of No. 14 (14q+) was the single most frequent abnormality and was noted in 14 of these patients. The frequency of the 14q+ marker chromosome varied with the type of lymphoma as defined by Rappaport. When the Lukes and Collins classification was used, the 14q+ marker was consistently associated with lymphomas having a clone of large noncleaved cells, small cleaved cells, and small noncleaved cells, but was absent in lymphomas composed of a clone of large cleaved cells and small lymphocytes. The findings suggest that, in certain groups of lymphoid malignancies, cells with a 14q translocation have a proliferative advantage compared with cells having other chromosome rearrangements, and that these malignant cells could be derived from a common progenitor.

Hairy cell leukemia: an analysis of the chromosomes of 26 patients

We studied the chromosomes from 26 patients with hairy cell leukemia (HCL) to ascertain the frequency and types of consistent chromosomal abnormalities. Samples from 21 patients were obtained from peripheral blood cultures grown 24 and 48 h without phytohemagglutinin, or from bone marrow samples. Two male patients had similar, consistent abnormalities; one patient's karyotype was 46, X, +12; that of the second was 46, X, +C marker. In the latter case, the distal long arm of the C marker most closely resembled chromosome No. 12 from band q14 to q terminal, but the short arm and proximal long arm were of undetermined origin. Both karyotypes lacked the Y chromosome. Nine of the 21 patients had abnormalities in single cells. One patient had, in one sample, a single abnormal cell with an extra No. 3 and an extra No. 12 (48, XY, +3, +12), and in a later sample, a second cell of poor morphology which also could have been trisomic for No. 12. Another patient had one cell with an unusually bright short arm, as well as two cells, with different abnormalities, both involving the short arm of chromosome No. 1. The two patients with consistent chromosome abnormalities had rapidly progressive disease in spite of splenectomy, and their clinical course from the time of diagnosis was relatively short (5 and 7 months, respectively).

Chromosome studies in myelomatosis

Cytogenetic studies of patients with multiple myeloma and plasma cell leukemia have shown that chromosome abnormalities occur in the bone marrow and/or the PHA-stimulated blood of at least half the patients. The abnormalities include numerical and structural aberrations and are highly variable. Hypodiploid modes occur fairly frequently. Addition of material to the long arm of the No. 14 chromosome (14q+ marker) occurs in about 17% of the small series of patients that have been studied with banding so far.

Chromosome 14 translocations in non-Burkitt lymphomas

Chromosome studies were performed on malignant cells obtained from 27 patients with non-Burkitt lymphomas. A marker chromosome affecting the long arm of No. 14 (14q+) was the single most frequent abnormality and was noted in 17 of these patients. The frequency of the 14q+ marker varied with the type of lymphoma. For patients with malignant lymphoma, histiocytic, the frequency was 5 of 8; for mixed-cell type, 1 of 3; for poorly differentiated lymphocytic, 8 of 8; for well-differentiated lymphocytic, 0 of 3; for lymphoblastic, 0 of 1; for Hodgkin's disease, 2 of 3; and for mycosis fungoides, 1 of 1. The donor chromosome involved in the 14q translocation was identified in 12 cases; certain chromosomes appeared to be affected more frequently than others. Although the break point was band 14q32 in most cases, the exact location of the receptor site on 14q was not always consistent. The distal part of 14q24 was also involved as a receptor site in at least one translocation. These findings suggest that, in some types of lymphoid malignancy, cells with a 14q translocation have a proliferative advantage over cells with other chromosome rearrangments. The presence of the 14q translocation may be important in the future for the distinction among morphologically different, but functionally comparable, subgroups of lymphoid malignancies.

Chromosome 14q+ in a retinoblastoma

A chromosome 14q+ was found in the tumor cells of a patient with sporadic, bilateral retinoblastoma. Eighty-six per cent of the metaphases contained the marker. Some metaphases showed a chromosome 6q--in addition. The question of the specificity of such markers in lymphoid malignancies is raised.