[Analysis of immunophenotypic features of blasts in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome by flow cytometry and its diagnostic significance].

ABSTRACT

This study was purposed to analyse the characteristics of blast immunophenotype in patients with refractory anemia with excess blasts, type 1 (RAEB-1) and refractory anemia with excess blasts, type 2 (RAEB-2) by flow cytometry and investigate its diagnostic significance, as well as to compare the blast rate detected by FCM and bone marrow smear (BMS). FCM was used to count the blast rate and detect the expression of its antigens in 29 cases of MDS. The result indicated that (1) The rate of the blasts detected by FCM and BMS was not statistically significant between patients with RAEB-1 and with RAEB-2 (P > 0.05); (2) Out of 13 patients with RAEB-1, the blasts of 10 cases, 12 cases, 8 cases, 11 cases, 11 cases, 3 cases, 7 cases, 0 case, 0 case, 3 cases and 2 cases patients had positive expressions of CD34, HLA-DR, CD117, CD33, CD13, CD15, CD11b, CD3, CD19, CD7 and CD56, separately. The blasts of 12 cases, 13 cases, 3 cases, 12 cases, 15 cases, 7 cases, 5 cases, 0 case, 1 case, 4 cases and 2 cases among 16 patients with RAEB-2 positively expressed CD34, HLA-DR, CD117, CD33, CD13, CD15, CD11b, CD3, CD19, CD7 and CD56, respectively. However, there was no significant difference in the expression of antigens in blasts of the bone marrow between the patients with RAEB-1 and with RAEB-2 (P > 0.05); (3) The positive expression for CD15 and CD11b in blasts was found in 10 cases and 12 cases, respectively; (4) The positive expression for CD19, CD7 and CD56 was observed in 1, 7 and 4 cases, respectively. None of the 29 cases of MDS was positive for CD3. It is concluded that FCM can reveal the characteristics of immunophenotypic abnormalities of the blasts in patients with MDS and provide the important information for diagnosis and differential diagnosis of MDS.