Distinction between Burkitt lymphoma subgroups by monoclonal antibodies: relationships between antigen expression and type of chromosomal translocation.

Twenty-six lines derived from 22 Burkitt lymphoma patients were examined for cytoplasmic vs. surface immunoglobulin and the expression of the monoclonal-antibody-detected BLA, CALLA and LB-I antigens. Six of the lines carried the variant translocations 8;2 or 8;22 (three each), 17 lines had the typical 8;14 translocation, I was translocation-negative (BJAB) and 2 were not examined cytogenetically. Depending on their immunoglobulin and surface marker expression, the BL lines could be subdivided into several subgroups. There was a strong inverse correlation between the expression of the CALLA and the LB-I marker. All BLA-lines were CALLA-, whereas the CALLA+ lines could be either BLA- or BLA+. All six variant translocations belonged to the CALLA-BLA-LBI+ category. Only one set of three lines, derived from the patient with the 8;14 translocation, belonged to the same subgroup. This suggests that the typical vs. the variant translocation freezes the BL cell at a different stage of differentiation. The variant translocation-carrying subtypes represent probably a somewhat more advanced stage of differentiation.