The Fate of Cells with Chromosome Aberrations after Total-Body Irradiation and Bone Marrow Transplantation

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Abstract
Cytogenetic studies were done on bone marrow cells and peripheral lymphoyctes of 4 patients (3 with acute nonlymphocytic leukemia, 1 with aplastic anemia) at various intervals up to 861 days after total-body X irradiation (TBI) at doses between 4.5 and 10 Gy [gray] (450-1000 rad) followed by syngeneic or allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. Whereas no radiation-induced aberrations could be found in the bone marrow, apart from a transient finding in the patient with the lowest radiation dose, aberrant metaphases were seen in the peripheral lymphocytes of 3 patients in the range from 2.5-46% even at 861 days after the exposure. There were no demonstrable aberrations related to TBI in the only patient developing graft-vs.-host disease. The dicentric yield as determined in the aberrant metaphases with 46 centromeres ranged between 3.4 .+-. 1.3 and 4.9 .+-. 0.4. In 1 patient it was demonstrated by BUdR [5-bromodeoxyuridine] labeling that after 10 Gy (1000 rad) TBI the surviving and heavily damaged lymphocytes can go into cell cycle and reach at least the 3rd mitosis. The percentage of aberrant cells diminished by about 25% at each mitotic division.