[Plasma cell leukemia. Bibliographic review and ultrastructural study (by transmission and scanning electron microscopy) in 2 cases]. / La leucemia plasmacellulare. Revisione bibliografica e studio ultrastrutturale (al M.E.T. ed al M.E.S.) in due casi.

After a brief examination of the recent literature on plasma cell leukemia, the Authors describe the clinical features and the ultrastructural findings of the peripheral blood plasma cells, examined with transmission (T.E.M.) and scanning (S.E.M.) electron microscopes, of two patients with acute plasma cell leukemia. Both of them had a previous history of myeloma. T.E.M. confirmed the diagnostic value of the asynchronous plasma cells, and S.E.M. showed the characteristic microvilli and blebs, previously observed.

[Non-secretory plasmacytoma. Bibliographic review and immunohistochemical study of a case]. / Plasmocitoma non secernente. Revisione bibliografica e studio immunoistochimico di un caso.

After a brief examination of the recent literature on non-secretory multiple myeloma, the Authors describe the immunohistologic study (peroxidase-antiperoxidase method) of a case of truly non producing plasmacytoma, interesting because of the presence of a small polyclonal plasma cell population within the neoplastic clone. Several possible explanations are considered.

[Autoantibodies and respiratory allergy: immunologic case study]. / Autoanticorpi e allergie respiratorie: studio casistico immunologico.

Sera obtained from 212 patients with rhinopathy and/or asthma of allergic origin (pollens and/or mites) and from 87 apparently healthy controls were studied for the presence of organ and non organ specific autoantibodies. These were determined by indirect immunofluorescence techniques (5) using test tissue from monkeys (thyroid) and rats (stomach, liver and kidney). Two groups were matched for age and sex and the tests were performed using the double-blind method. The incidence observed was not dissimilar to that detected in healthy subjects, with the exclusion of smooth-muscle antibodies. These were present to a lesser extent in patients with respiratory allergies (0.94%) in contrast with the incidence of 5.73% in normal subjects (P less than 0.01). On the basis of our findings, it seems possible to hypothesize that allergic patients have a lesser tendency to autoimmune diseases because the immune system is committed to the IgE-mediated immunoreactions. In conclusion, autoantibodies do not seem to play a role in the pathogenesis of respiratory allergies to inhaled allergens.

[Hypocholesterolemia in multiple myeloma. Inverse relation to the component M and the clinical stage]. / Ipocolesterolemia nel mieloma multiplo. Relazione inversa con la componente M e con lo stadio clinico.

The following parameters were studied in 41 Durie & Salmon staged patients with multiple myeloma: M component, bone lesions, marrow plasma cell %, Hb, leukocytes/mm3, lymphocytes/mm3, platelets/mm3, blood calcium, serum albumin, blood creatinine, BUN, total blood cholesterol. Linear correlation was adopted for the relation between two variables, using Pearson's coefficient, and Student's t test for unpaired data for comparison between the means. A significant (slight to excellent) inverse correlation was noted between total blood cholesterol and the M component. There was also a significant difference between the 1st and 2nd stage of the disease in this respect (P less than 0.05), between the 1st and 3rd (P less than 0.01), and between the 1st and the 2nd and 3rd combined (P less than 0.01). Progress of the disease appears to result in a fall in blood cholesterol. This parameter may be of assistance in differentiating slow-progressing forms from the more aggressive forms requiring treatment. The reasons for this change are discussed. Since cholesterol is an essential part of the cell membranes, attention is given to theories postulating a disorder in intracellular membrane metabolism.

[Prognosis of chronic lymphatic leukemia. Retrospective study of the survival period 47 patients]. / Sulla prognosi della leucemia linfatica cronica. Studio retrospettivo della durata di sopravvivenza di 47 pazienti.

Forty-seven consecutive patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) followed in the Clinica Medica and the Sezione di Ematologia of Ferrara from January 1966 to June 1979 were classified according to the staging system of Rai and to age, sex and the occurrence of enlarged spleen or liver or both. Analysis of actuarial survival curves revealed the following: 1) the method of staging proposed by Rai was confirmed to be a reliable predictor for prognosis of CLL; 2( neither age nor sex do appear to be prognostic factor; 3) the enlarged liver did not appear to make worse the prognosis of CLL, probably by hepatomegalies due to other aetiologies. Furthermore the bound of peripheral lymphocytosis of 15,000/mm3, also according to other authors, seems to be too high: numerous cases of undoubted CLL with smaller lymphocytosis ae left out of this and other statistics published on CLL.