DNA Amplification in Glial Cells of Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy: An Image Analysis Study

• Published in: Journal of neuropathology and experimental neurology Vol. 55; no. 6; pp. 729 - 733
• Main Authors: Ariza, Aurelio, Mate, José L, Serrano, Sergi, Isamat, Marc, Keysers, Ursula, Aracil, Carme, Navas-Palacios, José J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hagerstown, MD American Association of Neuropathologists, Inc 01.06.1996; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
• Subjects: Adult; AIDS/HIV; Aneuploidy; Astrocytes - physiology; Astrocytes - virology; Biological and medical sciences; Cell Nucleus - chemistry; Cell Nucleus - genetics; Coloring Agents; DNA - genetics; Flow Cytometry; Gene Amplification; Humans; JC Virus - genetics; Leukoencephalopathy, Progressive Multifocal - genetics; Leukoencephalopathy, Progressive Multifocal - pathology; Leukoencephalopathy, Progressive Multifocal - virology; Male; Medical sciences; Multiple sclerosis and variants. Guillain barré syndrome and other inflammatory polyneuropathies. Leukoencephalitis; Neuroglia - chemistry; Neuroglia - cytology; Neurology; Oligodendroglia - physiology; Oligodendroglia - virology; Paraffin Embedding; Rosaniline Dyes; Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 - physiology; Human; Immunopathology; Nervous system diseases; Neuroglia; Exploration; AIDS; Hemopathy; Astrocyte; Immune deficiency; Cerebral disorder; Inflammatory disease; Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy; Infection; Virus; Amplification; Image analysis; Oligodendrocyte; Viral disease; DNA; Central nervous system disease; Slow virus
• ISSN: 0022-3069; 1554-6578
• DOI: 10.1097/00005072-199606000-00007

JC virus (JCV), the agent of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), has been shown by both immunohistochemistry and flow cytometry to be associated with p53 protein stabilization. Since stabilization/inactivation of p53 is associated with the development of genomic instability, abnormal cell DNA contents are to be expected in JCV-infected cells of PML. This work explores that possibility by image analysis evaluation of DNA content in PML-infected oligodendrocytes and bizarre astrocytes.Brain paraffin sections of PML lesions from five adult male patients with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) were treated with the Feulgen technique to obtain a stochiometric staining of DNA and analyzed with a microscope image processor. Inclusion-bearing oligodendrocytes exhibited near tetraploid DNA indices in each of the five cases, whereas atypical astrocytes were in the hypertetraploid range in all cases and were polyploid in four instances.This evidence of DNA amplification in PML glial cells is congruent with the functional abolition of p53 protein in association with JCV infection and lends further support to the role of p53 as a keeper of diploid status and guardian of genomic stability.