THEOPHYLLINE, A NEW INDUCER OF APOPTOSIS IN B-CLL - ROLE OF CYCLIC-NUCLEOTIDES

We report a case of indolent B-chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (B-CLL) i n a stage A patient, treated for 10 years only by theophylline for bro nchial asthma. As suggested by the spontaneous apoptosis in the patien t's blood (10%), theophylline at 50 mu g/ml increased spontaneous apop tosis after 72 h in culture by a mean percentage of 90% (range 79-98%) in six B-CLL cases studied in vitro. This effect was partially revers ed with Rp-cAMP, a cAMP antagonist, which implies a potent role for th is second messenger. We describe a new property of theophylline, which might be an alternative treatment in B-CLL.