Dermatoglyphics in children with acute leukaemia

A study of digital dermatoglyphics in Ireland

Handprints obtained from 600 Irish subjects (274 males and 326 females), drawn from all counties of Ireland, were analysed. There was no clear evidence of any differences between the four great provinces of Ireland, nor between east and west, such as were shown by comprehensive blood group data, and it is concluded that Ireland can be regarded as dermatoglyphically homogeneous. Comparisons of the Irish quantitative and qualitative digital dermatoglyphics with those from other samples in Britain, and from other European countries, show that Ireland occupies a near-extreme position in the European range. These results are regarded as compatible with the interpretation from blood group evidence, that Ireland represented a region of refuge for an ancient population in the face of continuing colonizing pressure from the east in prehistoric and historic times, and traces of that ancient population are detectable in the genepool today.

Dermatoglyphics and acute lymphocytic leukemia in children

Cellular features of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) in children suggest that it originates in abnormal embryogenesis. Because palmar flexion creases develop in the embryo at the same time as the blood-forming cells, and because both arise from mesodermal tissue, insults to the embryo that may lead to leukemic changes in the blood-forming cells may also result in aberrant palmar crease patterns. This study investigated the relationship between aberrant palmar creases and ALL in children who developed leukemia at age 6 years or younger. Odds ratios and chi squares demonstrated significant differences in bilateral aberrant palmar creases between ALL children and relatives (P less than .025). Differences were not explained by familial clustering of aberrant creases. These results support the theory that the insult occurred during pregnancy, probably in the first trimester. There were no significant differences in either bilateral or unilateral aberrant palmar creases between ALL children and their siblings. All children with bilateral aberrant creases had a higher incidence of central nervous system involvement (50%) than those without bilateral aberrant creases (6%). This may reflect a preleukemic change in utero before the time the blood-brain barrier has been established.

Palmar flexion creases in childhood neoplasia

About 90% of Caucasian individuals in the general population may observe two transverse palmar flexion creases when their fingers are slightly bent. A small minority may find in one hand a single transverse crease or the usual two creases, of which one seems to cut across the palm to the ulnar margin. Those unusual creases are called simian- or Sydney-creases, respectively. Normal healthy people hardly ever observe them in both hands. We observed those unusual creases, however, in more than 50% of children suffering from different type of malignant neoplasia, quite often in both hands. The difference between patients and controls of similar ages is highly significant. Among patient with childhood acute lymphocytic leukemia the variant creases were mostly of the Sydney type. They most frequently occurred in those patients in whom the disease had become manifest at an early age. Since fathers as well as mothers of the patients showed significantly higher frequencies of unusual creases, the phenomenon seems to be a familial one. A most singular effect is the striking incidence of those creases in younger siblings of the patients. With regard to crease variance our data are essentially similar for lymphoproliferative disorders (ALL and NHML) and embryonic malignant tumors. This might be the first indication of a common host factor in patients with ALL or embryonic tumors occurring in early childhood. We have postulated that this factor may be a regulatory one associated with cellular growth and differentiation in early fetal palmar pads as well as with cell-mediated immune response to early pediatric tumors. The observation of palmar flexion creases may prove to be rewarding in future studies of cellular defense mechanisms in young patients with neoplasia.

Normal and aberrant palmar creases in twins and siblings

The present study involving MZ and DZ twin pairs, as well as paired normal sibs, was undertaken to investigate further the genetic involvement in the formation of normal palmar crease patterns, as well as simian and Sydney patterns. Two variations of normal creases were investigated: the thenar type R and the distal type I. Both types cluster in families. The R is more frequent in the females. For both types, MZ twins are more concordant than DZ twins or sibs. Sib studies suggest strong genetic involvement in the development of both the R and I crease types. Parents with simian and/or Sydney creases have more children with these traits than offspring of parents without these traits; however, concordance rate comparisons of MZ or DZ twins and sibs do not suggest strong genetic involvement as in the case of the R and I crease types.

Leukaemia in children and their grandparents: studies of immune function in six families

Seven of 500 children with acute leukaemia seen over a 15-year period were known to have a close relative with leukaemia or lymphoma. In each case the affected relative was a grandparent of the child, six of the seven being paternal grandparents. Investigation of thses six families showed that the fathers, who had two affected first-degree relatives, had lower lymphocyte counts and higher serum IgA concentrations than paired controls. Atopy, repeated infections and rheumatic disease were common amongst the parents and their sibs. The findings suggest a possible immunodeficiency basis for leukaemia in these families and perhaps also for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia of childhood in general. In the only family in which three generations, including both leukaemic patients, were available for HL-A typing, the affected grandson had not inherited either of his affected grandmother's haplotypes.