title: Abnormal chromatin clumping in leucocytes: a clue to a new subtype of myelodysplastic syndrome.
abstract: We report 6 patients with myelodysplastic syndrome, all of whom showed a bizarre nuclear anomaly within the neutrophils that was characterized by extensive clumping of chromatin into large blocks separated by clear zones, generally associated with a lack of segmentation. Anaemia, thrombocytopenia, variable leucocyte counts with leucoerythroblastic picture, marrow hypercellularity with granulocytic hyperplasia and moderate dysplastic changes in erythroblastic and megakaryocytic lines were present at diagnosis. 2 patients had normal karyotypes and a 3 showed a deletion of chromosome 14. 5 out of 6 patients had pneumonia at diagnosis. The median survival was short (5 months) and haemorrhagic complications were the cause of death in 4 patients. The clinical features and the evolution of these and other reported cases suggest that the presence of abnormal chromatin clumping in leucocytes might be a clue to a new subtype of myelodysplastic syndrome.
authors.affiliation: Servicios de Hematología y Hemoterapia, Hospital General 'Val d'Hebrón, Barcelona, España.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jaén
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Irriguible
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Milla
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vallespi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Torrabadella
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Abella
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lafuente
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Woessner
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000740:Anemia / Q000209:etiology; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000473:pathology; D002843:Chromatin / Q000473:pathology*; D002872:Chromosome Deletion; D002883:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 14; D004900:Erythroblasts / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006098:Granulocytes / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D006965:Hyperplasia; D007621:Karyotyping; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008533:Megakaryocytes / Q000473:pathology; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008875:Middle Aged; D009190:Myelodysplastic Syndromes / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000150:complications; D013921:Thrombocytopenia / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D002843:Chromatin