Auer-rod positive myelocytic leukemia cells in diffusion chambers: differentiation along the eosinophilic pathway.
Auer-rod positive acute myelocytic leukemia (AML) blasts from a 33-year-old patient were cultured in diffusion chambers (DC) in order to test their differentiation potential. The cells were labeled with anti-human granulocyte anti-serum known to be negative for eosinophils, and evaluated using the unlabeled peroxidase-antiperoxidase (PAP) method. Parallel to a decline in the number of leukemic blasts there was an increase of up to 86% in the number of granulocytic cells belonging to the eosinophilic series. Auer-rod bodies were found in the eosinophilic cells even after 20 days in culture. Staining with anti-granulocyte antiserum failed to demonstrate positive cells at any time during DC culture. Based on the negative reaction with the anti-granulocytic antibodies already at an early stage of development evidence is provided for the existence of a progenitor cell exclusively committed to the eosinophilic pathway.
D000328:Adult; D000906:Antibodies; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D004804:Eosinophils / Q000473:pathology; D006098:Granulocytes / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male
D000906:Antibodies