A novel translocation t(3;22)(q21;q11) involving 3q21 in myelodysplastic syndrome-derived overt leukemia with thrombocytosis

We report here a novel translocation t(3;22)(q21;q11) in myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS)-derived overt leukemia with thrombocytosis. A 44-year-old female was initially diagnosed as MDS with a low platelet count and normal karyotype. After 4 months, blood leukemic cells and platelets rapidly increased concomitantly and a diagnosis of acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML M1) was made. Chromosome analysis showed 46, XX, t(3;22)(q21;q11) in 14 of 20 metaphases. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis confirmed both the der(3)t(3;22) and the der(22)t(3;22). Our results suggest that unidentified gene(s) at 3q21 breakpoint may be implicated in the pathogenesis of abnormal thrombopoiesis as observed in the 3q21q26 syndrome.     

T(1;21;8)(p34;q22;q22): a novel variant of t(8;21) in acute myeloblastic leukemia with maturation

The complex variants of t(8;21) involving chromosomes 8 and 21 as well as another chromosome account for approximately 3% of acute myeloid leukemia patients. We report here a 30-year-old male patient with AML-M2. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis using dual-color fluorescence ETO and AML1 probes located at 8q22 and 21q22 respectively showed an AML1/ETO fusion signal on the derivative chromosome 8. Whole chromosome painting probes were used for chromosome 1, 8 and 21 and revealed a three-way translocation (1;21;8)(p34 ~ p35;q22;q22). Involvement of chromosome region 1p34 has never been reported earlier, although region 1p35 as a variant in AML with t(8;21) has been reported with an AML1/ETO fusion signal on the 1p35 rather than der(8). In conclusion, combining conventional karyotype, FISH or RT-PCR analyses are a rational strategy for the identification of the complex variants of t(8;21) translocation which could be critical events responsible for leukemogenesis.     

11例t(16;21)(p11;q22)急性髓系白血病病例报告并文献复习

目的:探讨11例伴t(16;21)(p11;q22)染色体易位的急性髓系白血病（acute myeloid leukemia,AML)患者的临床和实验室特点。方法:回顾性分析2007年07月至2022年03月我院收治的11例t((16;21)(p11;q22)染色体易位的AML患者临床及实验室特征并复习相关文献。结果:11例t(16;21)(p11;q22)染色体易位的白血病均为AML,FAB分型:M2型4例,M4型1例,M5型3例,AML(非M3)型3例;其中男5例,女6例。染色体R显带分析11例均可见到t(16;21)(p11;q22)染色体易位,其中9例伴有附加染色体异常。融合基因TLS/FUS-ERG检测了9例均为阳性。免疫表型除表达髓系CD34、CD117、CD33、CD13、CD38外,均表达CD56。化疗1个周期后完全缓解7例。结论:t(16;21)(p11;q22)染色体易位是一种少见的重现性染色体异常,该易位产生TLS/FUS-ERG融合基因,免疫学检测多伴CD56阳性,以AML中M2/M5型多见,化疗1个周期大部分可完全缓解,但短期内易复发,预后不良。     

Deregulation of FCGR2B expression by 1q21 rearrangements in follicular lymphomas.

We report here the molecular cloning and characterization of a t(1;14)(q21;q32) in a follicular lymphoma (FL) with an unusual BCL2 aberration. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and Southern blot analysis of tumor cells identified the translocation breakpoint within the 5' switch region of IGHG (Sgamma). We cloned the chimeric breakpoint region approximately 1.5 kbp downstream from the HindIII site of 5'Sgamma2 on chromosome 14q32 and identified a 360-bp novel segment with homology to the CpG island clone 11h8. Two BAC clones containing this sequence were isolated and mapped to 1q21 by FISH. BAC 342/P13 contained sequences homologous to Fcgamma receptors 2A, 3A, 2B, 3B, and a heat shock protein gene HSP70B. The translocation brought the Sgamma2 region of a productive IGH allele 20 approximately 30 kbp upstream of FCGR2B. As a result of the translocation, the b2 isoform of FCGR2B was overexpressed in the tumor. Screening of a panel of 76 B-cell lymphomas with 1q21-23 cytogenetic aberrations by Southern blot analysis using breakpoint probes identified an additional FL with a t(14;18)(q32;q21) and a breakpoint in the FCGR2B region. These results suggest that FCGR2B may be deregulated by 1q21 aberration in BCL2 rearranged FLs and possibly play a role in their progression.     

Submicroscopic deletions in an acute myeloid leukemia case with a four-way t(8;11;16;21)

The t(8;21)(q22;q22) rearrangement is observed in about 15% of acute myelocitic leukemia (AML) cases, while variant t(8;21) translocations are detected in 6-10% of AML patients positive for the 5'RUNX1/3'CBFA2T1 fusion gene. We report a detailed molecular cytogenetic analysis of a four-way variant t(8;11;16;21)(q22;q14;q12;q22) performed by fluorescence in situ hybridization with specific BAC and PAC clones. The study demonstrated the loss of several megabases belonging to chromosomes 11 and 16 whereas no deletion was detected on der(21). These findings suggest that a precise breakpoint characterization could identify submicroscopic genomic deletions whose meaning remains to be defined.     

Incidence of MLL rearrangement in acute myeloid leukemia, and a CALM-AF10 fusion in M4 type acute myeloblastic leukemia

To determine the incidence of the mixed lineage leukemia (MLL) gene rearrangements in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) without cytogenetically-detected 11q23 abnormalities, we screened 64 cases of AML at diagnosis for MLL rearrangement by FISH. Three cases (4.7%) had a MLL rearrangement detected; one was shown to have a cryptic t(11;22)(q23;q11) and another to have a t(9;11)(p21-22;q23) which had been missed by the conventional cytogenetic study. No 11q23 structural abnormality was visible in the third case. Twenty-six of the 64 cases were further studied by Southern blotting and DNA hybridization, and four of these cases (15%) were found to have MLL rearrangement: in three of these, FISH had not detected any abnormality. FISH was also used to confirm MLL involvement in eight cases of AML that had a cytogenetic abnormality at 11q23; in one of these, Southern blot did not show a rearrangement. The survival of patients with MLL abnormalities identified by cytogenetics, FISH and/or DNA analysis was significantly worse than that of patients without MLL abnormalities (event-free survival p = 0.016) although two patients with a t(9;11)(p21-22;q23) were long-term survivors, consistent with this particular translocation having a better prognosis. One further case with a cytogenetic abnormality close to 11q23 was studied; it was found to have a t(10;11)(p13;q21), and the breakpoints were shown by FISH to involve the Clathrin Assembly Lymphoid Myeloid (CALM) gene at 11q21 and the AF10 gene at 10p13. Our data confirm the value of combining cytogenetic, FISH and molecular analyses to define the incidence and precise nature of MLL and 11q23 abnormalities in AML.     

急性髓系白血病伴新的t(8;21)变异易位——t(7;21)(p21;q22)易位

目的:探讨1例急性髓系白血病(acute myeloid leukemia,AML)伴新的t(8; 21)变异易位即t(7; 21)(p21;q22)易位患者的临床与分子生物学特点.方法:将AML患者的骨髓细胞经短期培养后按常规方法制备染色体,R显带进行核型分析;利用AML1/ETO双色双融合探针进行荧光原位杂交检测;实时荧光定量PCR法检测AML1/ETO融合基因的转录本拷贝数.结果:患者的常规细胞遗传学分析结果显示为t(7; 21)(p21;q22)易位.86％的骨髓细胞为AML1/ETO融合基因阳性,融合基因转录本为51 440个拷贝/10 000个内参Ab1基因拷贝.结论:t(7;21)(p21; q22)是一种新的t(8; 21)(q22; q22)变异易位,与其他类型的t(8; 21)变异易位相似,预示有良好预后.     

Hemophagocytosis by leukemic blasts in 7 acute myeloid leukemia cases with t(16;21)(p11;q22): common morphologic characteristics for this type of leukemia

BACKGROUND: In a previous study of a case of acute megakaryoblastic leukemia with t(16;21)(p11;q22), which displayed hemophagocytosis by leukemic blasts, the authors mentioned that the same type of morphology had been cited in the literature for 4 other cases of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with the same translocation. This observation prompted the authors to examine more cases of AML with t(16;21)(p11;q22) for this morphology. METHODS: The authors reviewed bone marrow smears for the presence of hemophagocytosis in 7 patients with AML identified as having t(16;21)(p11;q22). RESULTS: The leukemias belonged to the FAB-M1/M7 (n = 5), M5b (n = 2), and contained phagocytic blasts in various percentages (< 0.2-36.7%). The blasts contained either single or multiple cytoplasmic vacuoles, in some of which the phagosomes were visible. The engulfed hemopoietic cells (red cells, erythroblasts, lymphocytes, and thrombocytes) were also noted in their cytoplasm. These observations confirmed that hemophagocytosis by leukemic blasts is a common and characteristic feature of this type of leukemia. CONCLUSIONS: The study of 12 cases (the 7 cases described here and the previous 5 cases) strongly supports the hypothesis that hemophagocytosis by leukemic blasts is common and characteristic in this type of leukemia, which may be related to the specific chromosome aberration of t(16;21)(p11;q22).     

Acute myeloid leukemia with inv(8)(p11q13)

A patient with acute monoblastic leukemia (AML M5a) and the pericentric inversion inv(8)(p11q13) as well as additional chromosome abnormalities in her bone marrow cells is described. This is the fourth known case of inv(8)(p11q13)-positive acute leukemia, and the second such case in which gain of 1q material occurred during clonal evolution. All patients with acute leukemia and inv(8)(p11q13) have been females, most have been young, and there has been a tendency for the disease to run an aggressive course. Both hematologically and cytogenetically, therefore, inv(8)(p11q13)-positive leukemia may be viewed as a variant of AML with t(8;16)(p11;p13). This similarity is also apparent at the molecular genetic level, in-as-much as the MOZ gene in 8p11 is rearranged in both the translocation and the inversion; in t(8;16)-positive leukemia, a MOZ-CBP chimeric gene is generated, whereas inv(8) has been shown to generate a MOZ-TIF2 fusion gene. Southern blot analysis of the present case after MOZ0.8 hybridization of Bam HI digested DNA gave an 11 kb aberrant band in addition to the germline band, corresponding to a breakpoint immediately upstream of the 4 kb long MOZ exon that begins at position 3746. Also previously investigated inv(8)-positive leukemias have shown breaks in this intron indicating that it contains sequence motifs predisposing to illegitimate recombination.     

Common 4q24 deletion in four cases of hematopoietic malignancy: early stem cell involvement?

We determined bone marrow karyotype at diagnosis in four female acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or myelodysplasia patients, aged between 52 and 56 years. In each case, we observed chromosome rearrangement involving the same 4q24 band. Three patients had a balanced reciprocal translocation as the sole abnormality - t(3;4)(q26;q24), t(4;5)(q24;p16) and t(4;7)(q24;q21) - and the fourth had del(4)(q23q24), +4. We used a set of 4q BAC probes for fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) in these four cases. We found a 4q24 submicroscopic deletion in all three translocations, with a common deletion of approximately 0.5 Mb. In three cases, we concluded that rearrangement occurred in an early hematopoietic stem cell, as it was detected, in mosaic with a normal karyotype, in a fraction of remission bone marrow cells, peripheral T and B lymphocytes, malignant lymph node T-lymphoma cells in one case and B-lymphoblastoid cell lines established in two cases. Moreover, one of 10 additional AML patients tested by FISH had a normal karyotype and deletion of one of the commonly deleted probe sequences. A tumor suppressor gene may therefore be involved, especially as two patients developed malignant lymphoma at the same time as myeloid proliferation.     

Specific chromosomal aberrations in de novo acute myeloid leukemia: a comparative analysis of results with a report of three novel chromosomal rearrangements t(7;14)(q35;q13), t(8;18)(p11.2;q12), t(13;15) in Indian population

Background: Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a heterogeneous disease with regard to morphology, immunophenotype, and genetic rearrangements. Multiple recurrent chromosomal aberrations have been identified by conventional cytogenetic analysis, which is now widely recognized as one of the most important diagnostic and prognostic determinants in AML. Method: Conventional cytogenetic analysis was done on 200 de novo AML subjects. Results: Of these, 176 (88%) were successfully karyotyped and 24 (12%) showed culture failure. Among the176 subjects, 101 (57.4%) were abnormal and 75 (42.6%) showed an apparently normal karyotype. The various aberrations observed were t(8;21)(q22;q22) (5.2%); t(15;17) (q22;q11-21) (9%); t(9;22)(q34;q11)(1.7%); t(14;17)(q32;q11.2)(0.5%); inv(16)(p13;q22)(1.7%); 11q23 rearrangements (4%); monosomy 7 (2.2%) and 22 (1.1%); deletion of 9q (q22q34) (5.1%), 5q (q13q33) (0.5%) and 13q (q13q31) (0.5%); common trisomies like +8 (5.6%), +16 (1.7%), +22 (1.1%), +21 (0.5%), +13 (0.5%), +11 (0.5%), +3 (0.5%); hyperdiploidy (3.4%); hypodiploidy (1.1%); complex karyotype (4%); and other structural abnormalities (4.5%). Apart from these, three novel chromosomal abnormalities viz. t(8;18), t(7;14), t(13;15) were observed in the current study population. Conclusion: This study confirms that the incidence of chromosomal abnormalities varies considerably. Comparatively, the incidence t(15;17), and del9q is higher, while that of −5/del5q, −7/del7q and inv (16) were lower in our population. Similarly, the frequency of other recurrent FAB associated abnormalities viz. 11qabn was comparable to previous reports. Furthermore, ongoing cytogenetic studies are warranted in larger groups of AML cases to identify newly acquired chromosomal aberrations that may aid in cloning novel genes involved in the neoplastic process, ultimately helping in the development of targeted therapeutic drugs.