SINGLE-CELL ANALYSIS OF THE T(14-18)(Q32-Q21) CHROMOSOMAL TRANSLOCATION IN HODGKINS-DISEASE DEMONSTRATES THE ABSENCE OF THIS TRANSLOCATION IN NEOPLASTIC HODGKIN AND REED-STERNBERG CELLS

Using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique and total DNA extr acts of Hodgkin's disease (HD)-involved lymph nodes, the t(14;18)(q32; q21) translocation was detected in 37 of 115 (32.2%) cases studied. No correlation was found between the presence of this translocation and bcl-2 protein expression in Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells det ected by immunohistochemistry 58 of 96 (60.4%) cases. To identify the cells carrying the t(14;18) translocation, single-cell DNA from HRS ce lls isolated by micromanipulation from frozen tissue sections of lymph nodes was investigated by PCR amplification, Eleven cases showing a p ositive band of the same size in at least two of five PCR experiments performed on the same total DNA extract were selected for single-cell PCR. We postulated that this repeated successful amplification could b e indicative of the presence of the t(14;18) translocation in the neop lastic HRS cells, Single cells from frozen tumor sections of the t(14; 18)-positive OCl LY8 cell line grafted into nude mice served as a posi tive control, The bcl-2/J(H) rearrangement, involved in this transloca tion, could be amplified from single-cell DNA of the latter tumor, whe reas, in all of the HD cases, HRS cells were found to be negative. We conclude that the t(14;18) translocation is not localized in HRS cells , but in nonmalignant B bystander lymphocytes, admired with these neop lastic cells, (C) 1998 by The American Society of Hematology.