title: Use of an anti-ALK antibody in the characterization of anaplastic large-cell lymphoma of childhood.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) is a tyrosine kinase inappropriately expressed in lymphoid tissue involved by CD30+ anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL) with the translocation t(2;5)(p23;q35)(, which juxtaposes the nucleophosmin gene (NPM) with that encoding ALK, resulting in a hybrid (NPM-ALK) message.
  
  
  METHODS
  A polyclonal antibody against residues of the kinase portion of NPM-ALK (designated anti-ALK 11) was tested for clinical utility in paraffin sections of 44 cases of pediatric large-cell lymphoma (LCL) and 17 additional lymphoma cases, by streptavidin-biotin-alkaline phosphatase method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Nineteen of 20 CD30+ cases (the majority exhibiting anaplastic morphology) labeled with anti-ALK 11, and 5/28 CD30- cases were also ALK+ (3 T cells, 1 null cell, and 1 B cell). Sixteen of 17 B-cell pediatric LCLs were negative, as were 6/6 cases of Hodgkin's disease and 7/7 cases of adult B-cell lymphoma. In pediatric LCLs with adequate follow-up (24/44 ALK+), there was no significant association between ALK expression and two-year event-free survival, similar to the finding reported previously for CD30 expression in these cases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that the majority of pediatric CD30+ ALCLs show ALK overexpression, consistent with the presence of the t(2;5)-encoded NPM-ALK fusion, but that the clinical significance of this entity remains unproven.
authors.affiliation: State University of New York, Health Science Center, Syracuse, USA.
authors.forename: R E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Hutchison
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Banki
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Shuster
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Barrett
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dieck
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Berard
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Link
authors.forename: T E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Pick
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Laver
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schwenn
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Mathew
authors.forename: S W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Morris
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000077548:Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase; D000906:Antibodies; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D017730:Ki-1 Antigen / Q000032:analysis; D016403:Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D016612:Paraffin Embedding; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases
chemical_list: D000906:Antibodies; D017730:Ki-1 Antigen; D009363:Neoplasm Proteins; C000626173:ALK protein, human; D000077548:Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases