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This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Rights and Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Norton, J. D. Articles by Leber, B. F. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Norton, J. D. Articles by Leber, B. F. Social Bookmarking                   What's this?  Previous Article  |  Table of Contents  |  Next Article  Rearrangement and expression of T cell antigen receptor genes in B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia JD Norton, J Pattinson, AV Hoffbrand, H Jani, JC Yaxley and BF Leber Department of Haematology, Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, London, UK. Fifty-nine patients with B cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) were screened for clonal rearrangement of T cell receptor (TCR) beta and gamma chain genes. Four were found with rearranged TCR beta genes, but none had detectable rearrangement of TCR gamma genes. One typical patient with B-CLL had a TCR beta gene structure consistent with a variable-diversity-joining rearrangement into the C beta 2 gene on one allele. An apparently identical rearrangement pattern was seen in a second patient, which suggested that there may be a restriction on the repertoire of possible TCR beta gene recombinations in mature B cells. Two further patients had a simple deletion of sequences, consistent with a diversity-joining rearrangement into C beta 2 on one allele. All four patients had rearrangements of immunoglobulin heavy- and light- chain genes typical of mature B cell malignancies. However, on review of clinical, morphological, and immunophenotype data, two had features consistent with B cell prolymphocytic leukemia or B lymphoma, and a third had progressed to a prolymphocytic transformation. Low-level expression of a predominantly 1.0- to 1.2-kilobase germ line TCR beta gene transcript was detected in several B-CLLs and at a comparable level in the four with rearranged TCR beta genes. This, together with the low frequency of TCR gene rearrangement, suggests that most B-CLL cases arise at a developmental stage when factors required for TCR gene activity are not operative. Volume 71, Issue 1, pp. 178-185, 01/01/1988 Copyright © 1988 by The American Society of Hematology CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this? This article has been cited by other articles: K. A. Foon, K. R. Rai, and R. P. Gale Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia: New Insights into Biology and Therapy Ann Intern Med, October 1, 1990; 113(7): 525 - 539. [Abstract] [PDF]

	Copyright © 1988 by American Society of Hematology         Online ISSN: 1528-0020