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Copyright of Yuzuncu Yil Universitesi Journal of Agricultural Sciences (YYU J Agr Sci) is the property of Yuzuncu Yil University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The correct classification of acute leukemias (AL) is an essential part in the evaluation of any patient with this disease. Historically, CD117 has been an important asset in the diagnosis of patients with mixed-phenotype acute leukemia (MPAL). In an attempt to simplify the diagnosis of MPAL with fewer and more lineage specific markers, the World Health Organization (WHO) proposed in 2008 a new criteria for the diagnosis of this type of AL, which excluded CD117 from the myeloid markers that are utilized to diagnose MPAL. In order to assess whether CD117 is necessary in the diagnosis of MPAL, we evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of CD117 for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in 331 patients with AL. The calculated sensitivity of CD117 for AML was 85.88% (103/120), while the specificity was 83.9% (177/211). Besides myeloperoxidase (MPO), which was used as the gold standard in differentiating AML from other type of ALs, the most specific markers for AML in our study were CD14 and CD64 (99.5 and 95.6%). Although the specificity of CD117 in this study is not as high as CD14 and CD64, markers concomitantly used in this this study and in the WHO classification, based on the results of other researches (i.e. the specificity of CD117 for AML was 100% in one study) and due to the fact that its specificity for AML in this study is relatively high, we recommend the use CD117 in assigning a myeloid lineage in MPAL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mixed phenotype acute leukemia (MPAL) in adults represents nearly 2 to 5 % of all acute leukemia cases. There are two large studies throughout the world and only case reports and small series have been reported in Latin America. This study retrospectively analyses the clinical characteristics and survival of 27 patients with MPAL evaluated in three medical institutions of Mexico. All cases meet World Health Organization 2008 criteria; 70.3 % of patients had B lymphoid/myeloid lineage MPAL. Induction chemotherapy protocols included 7 + 3 hyper-CVAD, high-density schedules, and pediatric-like regimens such as New York II and total XI. Complete remission was achieved in 23/27 patients (85.2 %). Only one patient died due to chemotherapy-induced aplasia during remission induction (5.2 %). In 68 % of cases, we were able to administer maintenance therapy as a regimen in lymphoblastic leukemia. At the time of analysis, 70.4 % of the patients in the entire cohort had died mainly as result of disease progression (73.6 %). Disease-free survival was 13 months (95 % CI, 9.6-16.3 months) and overall survival was 14.8 months (95 % CI 13.4-16.27). Survival rates are low and standardized therapy for the management of this type of leukemia is still lacking. This is the largest series reported in Mexico and to the best of our knowledge in Latin America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Egil Skallagrimsson, the ambiguous poet–Viking hero of Egil''s Saga, had bone deformities and symptoms that are known only from their descriptions in the Saga. By “excavating words”, previous workers have concluded that Egil suffered from Paget''s disease. However, the descriptions in the Saga are arguably also consistent with skeletal fluorosis, a condition not previously considered in Egil''s differential diagnosis. The literary and historical evidence available about Egil and the environment in which he lived is reconsidered to examine this possible alternative diagnosis. Endemic fluorosis occurs in places with high fluoride levels in soil, water, and food, with one environmental source being volcanic ash. There are ample records of fluorosis in Icelandic sheep and other stock (including gaddur), and a possible historical reference to human fluorosis following the Laki Fissure eruption in 1783. A travel history removing Egil from fluoride exposure does not support the diagnosis, but the reliability of the various pieces of evidence presented in the Saga must be weighed against their presumed significance in the historical and sociocultural context in which the Saga was written. The location and analysis of Egil''s actual bones, which were re-interred “on the edge of the graveyard at Mosfell”, would put the question of Egil''s diagnosis to rest. The case illustrates the potential value of interpreting historical narrative as a supplement to archaeological and palaeopathological investigation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Biphenotypic acute leukemia (BAL), or acute leukemia with a single population of blasts coexpressing markers of two different lineages, is a rare clinical entity. To define BAL, a scoring system was proposed by the European Group of Immunological Markers for Leukemias (EGIL) in 1995. However, increasing evidence suggests that this system has limitations, as acknowledged by the 2008 World Health Organization (WHO) Classification of Tumors of Hematopoietic and Lymphoid Tissues. Although substantially improved in relation to the EGIL, the new WHO Classification is still not optimal for guiding the clinical management of patients with BAL. We propose a new paradigmatic approach to defining BAL based on recent clinical studies of BAL and advances in immunologic marker definition and cytogenetics, and applied our new approach to 8 cases of "BAL" among a cohort of 742 new acute leukemias in our Cancer Center. By our new criteria, 6 cases were reclassified as acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), while only 2 were still classified as BAL. Our approach is also supported by analyses of the BAL cases previously reported by other institutions.