Receptors for the third component of complement: their association with maturation stage in non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) and their possible implication with the development of follicular structures.

In the majority of 188 non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) investigated in this study, we found a simultaneous expression of the receptors for c3b and c3d (CR1 & CR2; CCcorr=0.69, P <0.0005). An analysis of the different histological entities of the Kiel classification revealed that this coexpression was most pronounced for germinal center-derived (CCcorr = 0.63, P=0.0004) and immunocytic NHL (CCcorr = 0-86. P=0.0024), whereas in chronic lymphocytic leukaemias there tended to be a more heterogeneotis pattern of complement receptor (CR) expression (CCcorr =0.29, P > 0.10 ) . In contrast to these NHL of mid B cell stage, most of the NHL of early (i.e. acute lymphocytic leukaemia, lymphoblastic NHL) and late B cell stage (i.e. hairy cell leukaemia, immunoblastic NHL, multiple myeloma) did not express either of these receptors. CR positive NHL often showed a follicular arrangement of the neoplastic cells and had higher numbers of T helper/inducer (T4) lymphocytes (PCRI < 0.00005, PCR2 <0.05). Some cases of mid B cell NHL and all cases of hairy cell leukaemia reacted with antibodies against CR3 (i.e. the ic3b receptor). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]