Clonal VDJ recombination of the immunoglobulin heavy chain gene by PCR in classical Hodgkin's disease.
Although Hodgkin's disease (HD) has been a subject of much investigation, fundamental questions remain unanswered regarding its lineage and clonality. The authors used a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique to investigate whether clonal Variable-Diversity-Joining recombination of the immunoglobulin heavy (IgH) chain gene, a phenomenon that characterizes clonal B-cell proliferations, exists in nodular sclerosing (NSHD) and mixed cellularity (MCHD) Hodgkin's disease (so-called "classical" Hodgkin's disease). The isolation of DNA from paraffin-embedded tissue sections allowed for direct correlation of PCR results with the cell populations that were analyzed. Thirty-two cases were studied. These included 12 cases in which the Reed-Sternberg (RS) cells expressed the B-cell antigen, CD20, and 10 cases that were classified as syncytial variant of NSHD (3 CD20+, 7 B-cell antigen negative). Overall, clonal patterns of VDJ PCR products were found in 14 of 32 (44%) cases. These clonal patterns were identified in 7 of 12 (58%) cases of CD20+ classical HD and in 7 of 20 (35%) cases of B-antigen-negative classical HD. Clonal patterns were found in 3 of 10 cases of syncytial variant of NSHD, including 2 of 3 (67%) CD20+ cases and 1 of 7 (14%) B-cell antigen-negative cases. The results of this study provide support that a subset of HD represents a clonal B-cell neoplasm, and indicate that clonal IgH VDJ sequences are more frequently found in CD20+ HD.
Kamel
O W
OW
Department of Pathology, Stanford University Medical Center, California 94305, USA.
Chang
P P
PP
Hsu
F J
FJ
Dolezal
M V
MV
Warnke
R A
RA
van de Rijn
M
M
D018951:Antigens, CD20 / Q000032:analysis; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm / Q000032:analysis; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D001483:Base Sequence; D004254:DNA Nucleotidyltransferases; D005803:Genes, Immunoglobulin; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains / Q000235:genetics*; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D015335:Molecular Probes / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D045567:VDJ Recombinases
D018951:Antigens, CD20; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains; D015335:Molecular Probes; D004254:DNA Nucleotidyltransferases; D045567:VDJ Recombinases