title: Use of polymerase chain reaction in the detection of clones in lymphoproliferative diseases of the skin.
abstract: Early-stage mycosis fungoides shows similar clinical symptoms and histological and immunophenotypical features to several benign lymphoproliferative skin disorders. We analyzed T cell receptor gamma gene rearrangement by polymerase chain reaction in the search for monoclonal lymphoid subpopulations in skin infiltrates. Totally, 283 skin biopsies (paraffin-embedded and frozen material) from patients with different malignant and reactive skin diseases were investigated. Using primers for the T cell receptor gamma chain gene, monoclonality was detected in 59 out of 66 (89%) cases of pleomorphic cutaneous lymphoma, in 60 out of 78 (77%) patients with mycosis fungoides, in 11 out of 22 (50%) cases of parapsoriasis en plaques, in five out of 35 (14%) cases of pseudolymphoma, in six out of 15 (40%) patients with lymphomatoid papulosis, and in none out of 64 patients with inflammatory skin diseases. The results show that clonal T cell population can be detected in the majority of patients with cutaneous T cell lymphoma, but the findings have to be correlated with the histological and morphological features.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, University of Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Staib
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sterry
mesh_terms: D002999:Clone Cells / Q000473:pathology*; D004273:DNA, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics; D003872:Dermatitis / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D015326:Gene Rearrangement, B-Lymphocyte, Heavy Chain; D015334:Gene Rearrangement, gamma-Chain T-Cell Antigen Receptor; D005803:Genes, Immunoglobulin; D006801:Humans; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D016399:Lymphoma, T-Cell / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D017731:Lymphomatoid Papulosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D008232:Lymphoproliferative Disorders / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D009182:Mycosis Fungoides / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D015514:Oncogene Proteins, Fusion / Q000235:genetics*; D010267:Parapsoriasis / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D004273:DNA, Neoplasm; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; D015514:Oncogene Proteins, Fusion