title: Molecular analysis of the NPM-ALK rearrangement in Hodgkin's disease.
abstract: The fusion gene NPM-ALK occurs in a subset of anaplastic large cell lymphomas (ALCLs), as a result of a chromosomal translocation, t(2;5) (p23;q35). It has been suggested that Hodgkin's disease (HD) and ALCL share a common histogenesis because of pathological and phenotypical similarities. In order to check this hypothesis, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was performed to detect the hybrid NPM-ALK gene in 30 tumour samples, including 22 lymph node biopsies from HD and eight ALCL specimens. The threshold level of sensitivity was shown to reach at least 1/10(4) by dilution experiments using cell lines as positive and negative controls. The expected 177 bp product indicative of the NPM-ALK rearrangement was identified in Karpas 299 and SUDHL-1 cell lines and in two out of eight ALCLs. The 22 HD cases were negative, even after two successive tests. Thus, since the ALCL-specific genetic alteration was absent in our series of HD cases, the present study does not support the hypothesis that HD and ALCL are histogenetically related entities.
authors.affiliation: Departement de Pathologie, Institut Paoli-Calmettes and U119 INSERM, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xerri
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Parc
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hassoun
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Birnbaum
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000077548:Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D002889:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 2 / Q000235:genetics*; D002895:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 5 / Q000235:genetics*; D015321:Gene Rearrangement; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D017728:Lymphoma, Large-Cell, Anaplastic / Q000235:genetics; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D000090243:Nucleophosmin; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000235:genetics; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D014178:Translocation, Genetic
chemical_list: D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D000090243:Nucleophosmin; C000626173:ALK protein, human; D000077548:Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases