The Usefulness of CD71 Expression by Flow Cytometry for Differentiating Indolent From Aggressive CD10+ B-Cell Lymphomas

Abstract

We studied 34 low- and 30 high-grade CD10+ B-cell lymphomas. Forward light scatter (FSC) and CD71 fluorescence intensity (CD71i) of tumor cells were measured and normalized by corresponding values for resting T cells. Significant differences in CD71i values between low- and high-grade lymphomas were observed by the Mann-Whitney U test (P < .001) and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis (P < .001). FSC was not significantly different between low- and high-grade lymphomas; the area under the ROC curve was less than that for CD71i. Neither FSC nor CD71i significantly differentiated follicular lymphoma (FL) grades. A comparison of all FLs (grades 1-3) and non-FL high-grade lymphomas (Burkitt lymphoma [BL] and large B-cell lymphoma [LBCL]) showed significant differences in CD71i (P < .001) and FSC (P = .021). Differences were significant in CD71i and FSC between FL and LBCL (P < .001) but not between FL and BL. CD71i is more potent than FSC for distinguishing CD10+ low- from high-grade lymphomas and FL from non-FL high-grade lymphomas. Sensitivity and specificity are limited owing to inability to identify FL3. In ROC analysis, a high value for CD71i can identify BL and LBCL with a high degree of certainty.

Cytogenetic and Flow Cytometry Evaluation of Richter Syndrome Reveals MYC, CDKN2A, IGH Alterations With Loss of CD52, CD62L and Increase of CD71 Antigen Expression as the Most Frequent Recurrent Abnormalities

“…Nearly 100% of the RS cells were CD71 positive, which is comparable with the high proliferation rate by the Ki-67 index in IHC studies and resembles DLBCL, NOS. The Ki-67 index cannot be demonstrated reliably by FCM, but according to Wu et al, 22 we recommend evaluation of CD71 as a marker of cell proliferation. In addition, in all patients, the same light chain type was expressed by both components, but in most cases, we found a loss of IgD expression in DLBCL, NOS.…”

Spontaneous apoptosis and proliferation detected by BCL-2 and CD71 proteins are important progression indicators within ZAP-70 negative chronic lymphocytic leukemia

“…Elevated bcl-2/bax ratio, determined by flow cytometry was confirmed to be a feature of apoptosis resistance and correlated with in vivo chemoresistance in CLL [10,11]. Wu et al [12] proposed CD71 expression by flow cytometry as a surrogate marker of proliferative activity, demonstrating that CD71 values were significantly higher within high-grade lymphomas. Interestingly, it has been found that the increased levels of soluble transferrin receptor were associated with a large tumor burden, an advanced stage, relapse and disease progression (DP) in CLL [13].…”

Transferrin Receptor Expression in Canine Lymphoma

“…13,36 Human studies have confirmed that TfR1 expression is higher in proliferating normal and malignant transformed cells than in their resting counterparts 42,44 and that TfR1 expression correlates with a variety of proliferation markers, including mitotic index, 31 Ki67 expression, 24 and 3 H-thymidine incorporation. 21 TfR1 expression has been measured and found to be expressed in many hematopoietic and nonhematopoietic neoplasms in humans, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), 11,13,15,17,21,25,34,47 acute leukemia, 3 and solid tumors of the brain, bladder, liver, and gastrointestinal tract. 2,19,26,37,39 Higher expression of TfR1 in NHL was associated with a poorer prognosis in 2 human studies.…”