A Study of the Chromosomes in Human Myelogenous Leukemic Cells with a Note on the Occurrence of Virus-like Particles

Abstract

The chromosome conditions were investigated in four cases of acute and subacute myelogenous leukemias and one case of chronic myelogenous leukemia of man based on the bone-marrow technique, and they were compared with normal somatic chromosomes. The results have indicated that in each leukemia under study there occur stem-cells which contribute to the growth of the leukemia. Those stem-cells show a rather small variability of chromosome number and morphology from normal somatic cells. The chromosome number mode was found to be 44 to 46 for case A, 44 to 45 for case B, 44 for case C, 46 for case D and 44, 45 to 46 for case E. Detailed observations have revealed that there occur morphological changes of chromosomes due probably to structural changes in leukemic cells. Generally the sexelement, particularly X-element, is entirely undetectable in leukemic cells.
Virus-like particles, 118mμ in average size, were detected by electron microscopy in leukemic cells infiltrated in liver tissue of a patient having chronic myelogenous leukemia. The occurrence of virus in relation to the development of leukemia was considered.