This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Omine, M. Articles by Perry, S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Omine, M. Articles by Perry, S.

Perturbation of Leukemic Cell Population in AKR Mice Due to Chemotherapy¹

Division of Cancer Treatment, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland 20014

The perturbation within the leukemic cell population due to effective chemotherapy has been analyzed in spontaneous AKR leukemia with cell sedimentation at 1 x g for the cytokinetic characterization. AKR mice with advanced leukemia were treated with 150 mg 1-ß-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine per kg (depot form of arabinosylcytosine) i.p. once a day for up to 3 days and were sacrificed on the day following the last injection. The thymus weight and the surviving cell number were reduced rapidly in an apparently exponential fashion. Successful treatment was accompanied by a marked and consistent alteration in cell size distribution. Medium and large cells were preferentially eliminated from the entire population, but a significant number of the small cells appear to have survived. These small cells, as well as the larger cells, were still capable of inducing leukemia after 1 and 2 days of treatment. However, after 3 days of treatment, this capability was lost. It was concluded that the small cells are heterogeneous as to clonogenicity, i.e., they consist of both nonclonogenic and clonogenic cells residing in either a G₀ or a long G₁ phase of the cell cycle.

¹ Presented in part at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology, Hollywood, Fla., December 3 to 6, 1972.

² Present address: The Third Department of Internal Medicine, University of Tokyo, Hongo, Bunkyo-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.

³ To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received 3/21/73. Accepted 7/11/73.