Auer rod-positive acute leukemia with predominantly lymphoid immunophenotype: Report on 11 cases and review of literature.

Background: Auer rods (AuRs) are prominent intracellular structures found almost exclusively in myeloid cell malignancies, such as acute myeloid leukemia (AML), chronic and juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome. Extremely rare AuRs have been reported in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or among ambiguous lineage leukemia patients with a dominantly lymphoblastic immunophenotype.

Procedure: We report diagnostic and follow-up data of an international cohort of 11 children suffering from leukemias with AuRs and with significant presence of T and myeloid markers, majority of whom categorized as early T-cell precursor (ETP, n = 7); or T-ALL (ETP status unknown, n = 2), ALAL (acute leukemia of ambiguous lineage, n = 1), and AML reclassified from ALAL (n = 1).

Tviblindi algorithm identifies branching developmental trajectories of human B-cell development and describes abnormalities in RAG-1 and WAS patients.

Detailed knowledge of human B-cell development is crucial for the proper interpretation of inborn errors of immunity and malignant diseases. It is of interest to understand the kinetics of protein expression changes during development, but also to properly interpret the major and possibly alternative developmental trajectories. We have investigated human samples from healthy individuals with the aim of describing all B-cell developmental trajectories.

Cytogenomic characterization of pediatric T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia reveals TCR rearrangements as predictive factors for exceptional prognosis.

Background: T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) represents a rare and clinically and genetically heterogeneous disease that constitutes 10-15% of newly diagnosed pediatric ALL cases. Despite improved outcomes of these children, the survival rate after relapse is extremely poor. Moreover, the survivors must also endure the acute and long-term effects of intensive therapy.

CD9 shapes glucocorticoid sensitivity in pediatric B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Resistance to glucocorticoids (GC), the common agents for remission induction in pediatric B-cell precursor acute lymphoblastic leukemia (BCP-ALL), poses a significant therapeutic hurdle. Therefore, dissecting the mechanisms shaping GC resistance could lead to new treatment modalities. Here, we showed that CD9- BCP-ALL cells were preferentially resistant to prednisone and dexamethasone over other standard cytotoxic agents.

CD371-positive pediatric B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia: propensity to lineage switch and slow early response to treatment.

In the effort to improve immunophenotyping and minimal residual disease (MRD) assessment in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the international Berlin-Frankfurt-Münster (iBFM) Flow Network introduced the myelomonocytic marker CD371 for a large prospective characterization with a long follow-up. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the clinical and biological features of CD371-positive (CD371pos) pediatric B-cell precursor ALL (BCP-ALL). From June 2014 to February 2017, 1812 pediatric patients with newly diagnosed BCP-ALLs enrolled in trial AIEOP-BFM ALL 2009 were evaluated as part of either a screening (n = 843, Italian centers) or validation cohort (n = 969, other iBFM centers).