CD95 ligand is expressed in Reed-Sternberg cells of Hodgkin's disease

Reed-Sternberg (RS) cells and their mononuclear variants, Hodgkin's (H) cel ls, are considered to be the neoplastic cells of Hodgkin's disease (HD). Th e cellular origin of H-RS cells remains the subject of considerable controv ersy, although most recent papers have claimed that H-RS cells are of B cel l origin, Recently, however, it has been reported that some H-RS cells expr ess granzyme B, as observed in cytotoxic T cells and/or natural killer cell s, which also express CD95 ligand (FasL/APO-1L). In the present study, the expression of CD95L and granzyme B in H-RS cells of HD was investigated, CD 95L was detected in H-RS cells in five of nine HD cases (one case of lympho cyte-rich classical HD, two of these cases of nodular sclerosis type, and t wo of four cases of mixed cellularity type), All three examined HD cell lin es expressed CD95L in the cytoplasm, although cell surface expression was s een only in L428 cells, Three HD cases expressed both CD95L and granzyme B. It was concluded that CD95L is frequently expressed in H-RS cells, which i s one of their notable characteristics; albeit it seems to be irrespective of cell lineage.