Molecular and fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis of a 10;11 rearrangement in a case of infant acute monocytic leukemia

Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis in a case of infant acute monocytic leukemia M5 revealed a complex rearrangement between chromosomes 10 and 11, leading to the disruption of the MLL gene. Using two painting probes for chromosomes 10 and 11 and a specific probe for the MLL gene localized on 11q23, we observed a paracentric inversion of the 11q13-q23 fragment translocated to 10p12. Molecular analysis showed that AF10 localized on 10p12 was the fusion partner gene of MLL in this rearrangement (10;11). This report underlined the usefulness of FISH and molecular techniques in identifying complex rearrangements.