title: The blood B-cells and bone marrow plasma cells in patients with multiple myeloma share identical IgH rearrangements.
abstract: Previous reports have described the phenotypic and functional properties of monotypic late stage B cells in the blood of patients with multiple myeloma and have speculated that these B cells represent a malignant circulating component of myeloma. Here we show that blood B cells have IgH rearrangements identical to those expressed by the bone marrow plasma cells by using Ig Fingerprint and Allele-Specific Oligomer (ASO) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods. DNA from purified blood B cells and bone marrow plasma cells taken at the same time, and blood B cells taken at subsequent patient visits was amplified using consensus IgH primers, or ASO primers. In 10/16 patients, a single IgH rearrangement was amplified from the bone marrow plasma cells. In all 10 of those patients the same clonotypic rearrangement was amplified from the purified blood B cells. The relationship of these clonal blood B cells to the malignant bone marrow plasma cells remains undetermined.
authors.affiliation: NCI-Navy Medical Oncology Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20889-5015.
authors.forename: P L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Bergsagel
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Masellis Smith
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Belch
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Pilarski
mesh_terms: D000782:Aneuploidy; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000032:analysis; D018941:Antigens, CD19; D018952:Antigens, CD34; D000944:Antigens, Differentiation, B-Lymphocyte / Q000032:analysis; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000473:pathology*; D002999:Clone Cells / Q000473:pathology; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000097:blood; D015326:Gene Rearrangement, B-Lymphocyte, Heavy Chain; D006801:Humans; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains / Q000235:genetics; D009101:Multiple Myeloma / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D010950:Plasma Cells / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD; D018941:Antigens, CD19; D018952:Antigens, CD34; D000944:Antigens, Differentiation, B-Lymphocyte; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains