The BCL6 product consists of a 165kb probe, labelled in red, centromeric to the BCL6 gene and a green probe, covering a 170kb region telomeric to the BCL6 gene.
Chromosomal rearrangements involving the BCL6 (B-cell CLL/lymphoma 6) gene at 3q27 are recognised recurrent abnormalities commonly seen in patients with B-cell malignancy1.
BCL6 rearrangements are the most common chromosomal abnormalities seen in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), occurring in up to 35% of cases2. They are also seen frequently in follicular lymphoma, where they occur in up to 15% of cases3. BCL6 is expressed in normal germinal centre B-cells and follicle helper T-cells. BCL6 translocations alter expression by promoter substitution and cause deregulated expression of normal BCL6 protein1,4.
Approximately 50% of BCL6 translocations will involve one of the three immunoglobulin loci (IGH, IGL or IGK); the remainder of translocations involve one of more than twenty different non-immunoglobulin genes5. Additionally, gains and amplifications of the BCL2 gene have also been reported in cases of B-cell lymphoma6.
The presence of concurrent BCL6 rearrangements with MYC and/or BCL2 rearrangements in patients with ‘dual-hit’ lymphoma has been shown to be associated with aggressive disease7.
I first came across CytoCell FISH probes in a previous lab I worked in and I was struck by the quality of the products. Since this time, I have been recommending and introducing CytoCell probes across all application areas — now they are the primary FISH probes used in our lab. They have an excellent range of products and their ready-to-use reagent format saves considerable time.
Elizabeth Benner
Medical Technologist, University of Arizona Health Network, USA
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