title: Genotypic analysis of cutaneous T-cell lymphomas.
abstract: The gene encoding the beta-chain of the T-cell antigen receptor (TCR) has been analyzed for evidence of rearrangement in skin, blood, and lymph node specimens from 23 cases of known or suspected cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). Two cutaneous large cell lymphomas, 4 cases of Sézary syndrome, and 5 cases of advanced (tumor) stages of mycosis fungoides showed clonal rearrangement of the TCR beta-chain gene in all samples, including lymph nodes in which histologic examination revealed only dermatopathic lymphadenitis. These results indicate that DNA analysis provides a valuable means for improving the diagnosis of extracutaneous disease in advanced stages of CTCL. In contrast, the gene was in a germline configuration in all samples from 12 patients with plaque stages of mycosis fungoides or suspected early CTCL, suggesting that in these 2 conditions the T-cell proliferation is either polyclonal or contains very few monoclonal (i.e., neoplastic) cells.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations; D005260:Female; D005796:Genes; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains / Q000235:genetics; D007147:Immunoglobulin Light Chains / Q000235:genetics; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000235:genetics; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes
chemical_list: D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains; D007147:Immunoglobulin Light Chains; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell