title: No expansion of the pre-B and B-cell compartments in the bone marrow of patients with multiple myeloma.
abstract: We have recently demonstrated that the CD24 antigen density of bone marrow (BM) lymphoid cells discriminates between pre-B cells and mature B-cells. Using this new method, we evaluated the B-cell lineage in the BM and peripheral blood (PB) of 18 patients with multiple myeloma (MM). First, the percentage of pre-B cells was significantly reduced by 40% in the BM of patients with MM: 2.3% +/- 2.2% versus 5.7% +/- 2.8% of normal BM lymphoid cells (P less than 0.01). This finding was associated with a significant reduction (50%) of the percentage of mature B-cells in both BM and PB, especially in patients with progressive disease (P less than 0.05). In contrast to what has been reported previously, we have not found any pre-B cells in the PB of these patients with MM. Secondly, BM pre-B and B-cell patients with MM did not express any activation markers (CD23, CD25, or CD71 antigens) and no CD5+ B-cells were found in the BM unlike in PB (8% CD5+ B-cells). Taken together, these data do not support the concept of a direct involvement (i.e, expansion or activation) of pre-B cells in MM without excluding the possibility of an early oncogenic event at the pre-B cell stage. Furthermore, our data emphasize this important reduction of the B-cell compartment (including that of pre-B cell) as a major cause of the humoral immunodeficiency in MM.
authors.affiliation: INSERM U291, Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Duperray
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bataille
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Boiron
authors.forename: I A
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Haagen
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Cantaloube
authors.forename: X G
authors.initials: XG
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Boucheix
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Klein
mesh_terms: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000032:analysis*; D000943:Antigens, Differentiation / Q000032:analysis*; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D051927:CD24 Antigen; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry / Q000379:methods; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate; D005452:Fluoresceins; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D006412:Hematopoietic Stem Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D009101:Multiple Myeloma / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D012016:Reference Values; D013861:Thiocyanates
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D015703:Antigens, CD; D000943:Antigens, Differentiation; D051927:CD24 Antigen; C497889:CD24 protein, human; D005452:Fluoresceins; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D013861:Thiocyanates; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate