Immunological Characterization of Normal and Leukemia-associated Antigens of Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia and Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia in Blast Crisis

Abstract Nonhuman primate antisera defining leukemia-associated and normal T- and B-lymphocyte-associated antigens were used to characterize serologically the cells from acute myelomonocytic leukemia (AMML) and chronic myelogenous leukemia patients in blast crisis (CML-BC). Earlier studies demonstrated that nonhuman primate antisera to chronic lymphocytic leukemia, acute myelogenous leukemia, and chronic myelogenous leukemia cells were able to distinguish between leukemia-associated antigens of lymphocytic and myelogenous types of leukemia cells. In this report, we show that cells from AMML and from some CML-BC patients react with antisera defining both lymphoid and myeloid leukemia-associated antigens. In addition, cytotoxic antisera detecting normal human T- and B-lymphocyte-associated antigens were reactive both with cells from AMML and with cells from some CML-BC patients. Cells from chronic myelogenous leukemia donors expressed this dual reactivity only at the stage of blast crisis. This type of reactivity with nonhuman primate antisera to leukemia-associated antigens and to T- and B-lymphocyte-associated antigens allows us to distinguish serologically the cells from these patients from other acute and chronic lymphocytic and myeloid leukemia cells. The ability of AMML or CML-BC cells to form sheep erythrocyte rosettes did not correlate with their reactivity with the cytotoxic antiserum defining a normal T-lymphocyte-associated antigen. Cells from some AMML and CML-BC patients also showed a significant response to stimulation with phytohemagglutinin.