Humoral response to wheat protein in patients with coeliac disease and enteropathy associated T cell lymphoma.

Features that might distinguish uncomplicated coeliac disease from enteropathy associated T cell lymphoma were investigated. Of 76 patients with coeliac disease, 71 (93%) had raised levels of alpha gliadin antibody and all responded clinically and histologically to treatment with a gluten free diet. In contrast, none of 16 patients with enteropathy associated T cell lymphoma had raised levels of alpha gliadin antibody, and treatment with a gluten free diet resulted in histological improvement in one and transient clinical improvement in six patients. The ratio of women to men was 2.2:1 in the group with coeliac disease and 1:1.6 in the patients with enteropathy associated T cell lymphoma. Thus patients with enteropathy associated T cell lymphoma do not display a humoral immune response to wheat protein (alpha gliadin), rarely respond to a gluten free diet, and are often men. Patients with uncomplicated coeliac disease usually have raised levels of alpha gliadin antibody, always respond to a gluten free diet, and are frequently women. These findings suggest the presence of two separate forms of enteropathy: one is benign and sensitive to wheat protein whereas the other runs a malignant course.     

Differences between the fecal microbiota of coeliac infants and healthy controls

Coeliac disease (CD) is an immune-mediated enteropathy with a multifactorial aetiology, characterized by chronic inflammation of the small intestinal mucosa. Although evidence suggests that the gut microbiota contributes to other chronic inflammatory disorders, its possible role in CD has not been determined. In this study, the composition of the fecal microbiota of coeliac children and age-matched controls was investigated by culture-dependent and -independent methodologies, using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). The levels of Bacteroides, Clostridium and Staphylococcus were significantly higher (p < 0.05) in fecal samples from coeliac patients than in healthy subjects when analysed by culture methods. The numbers of Bacteroides-Prevotella, Clostridium histolyticum, Eubacterium rectale-C. coccoides, Atopobium, and sulfate reducing bacterial groups were also significantly higher (p < 0.05) in fecal samples from coeliac infants when analysed by FISH. The counts of Bifidobacterium tended to be higher in healthy controls by the two type of analysis but the differences were not significant. This is the first report on the identification of the specific bacterial groups responsible for alterations in the intestinal microecology of children with active CD. The bacterial pattern detected in coeliac patients, correlates with the epidemiological data and metabolic deviations associated with CD, and involve bacterial groups link to other chronic inflammatory disorders.     

DNA synthesis by jejunal mucosa in responsive and non-responsive coeliac disease.

DNA synthesis by jejunal biopsy specimen from patients with coeliac disease and from controls was measured by an organ culture technique. The rate of synthesis in the mucosa of patients with untreated coeliac disease was almost eight times that in normal mucosa. Patients whose jejunal mucosa remained flat despite prolonged gluten withdrawal showed a rate of DNA synthesis significantly lower than that of the untreated patients, while those whose jejunal mucosa had responded to gluten withdrawal showed a rate similar to that of normal subjects. Impaired enterocyte production in nonresponsive coeliac disease may be responsible for the failure to regenerate villi after gluten withdrawal.     

Purinergic receptors expressed in human skeletal muscle fibres

Purinergic receptors are present in most tissues and thought to be involved in various signalling pathways, including neural signalling, cell metabolism and local regulation of the microcirculation in skeletal muscles. The present study aims to determine the distribution and intracellular content of purinergic receptors in skeletal muscle fibres in patients with type 2 diabetes and age-matched controls. Muscle biopsies from vastus lateralis were obtained from six type 2 diabetic patients and seven age-matched controls. Purinergic receptors were analysed using light and confocal microscopy in immunolabelled transverse sections of muscle biopsies. The receptors P2Y(4), P2Y(11) and likely P2X(1) were present intracellularly or in the plasma membrane of muscle fibres and were thus selected for further detailed morphological analysis. P2X(1) receptors were expressed in intracellular vesicles and sarcolemma. P2Y(4) receptors were present in sarcolemma. P2Y(11) receptors were abundantly and diffusely expressed intracellularly and were more explicitly expressed in type I than in type II fibres, whereas P2X(1) and P2Y(4) showed no fibre-type specificity. Both diabetic patients and healthy controls showed similar distribution of receptors. The current study demonstrates that purinergic receptors are located intracellularly in human skeletal muscle fibres. The similar cellular localization of receptors in healthy and diabetic subjects suggests that diabetes is not associated with an altered distribution of purinergic receptors in skeletal muscle fibres. We speculate that the intracellular localization of purinergic receptors may reflect a role in regulation of muscle metabolism; further studies are nevertheless needed to determine the function of the purinergic system in skeletal muscle cells.     

Texture analysis of the epidermis based on fast Fourier transformation in Sjögren-Larsson syndrome

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether image analysis of routine hematoxylin-eosin (H-E) skin sections using fast Fourier transformation (FFT) could detect structural alterations in patients with Sj?gren-Larsson syndrome (SLS) diagnosed by molecular biology. STUDY DESIGN: Skin punch biopsies of 9 patients with SLS and 17 healthy volunteers were obtained. Digital images of routine histologic sections were taken, and their gray scale luminance was analyzed by FFT. The inertia values were determined for different ranges of the spatial frequencies in the vertical and horizontal direction. To get an estimation of anisotropy, we calculated the resultant vector of the designated frequency ranges. RESULTS: In the prickle cell layer, SLS patients showed more intense amplitudes in spatial structures with periods between 1.2 and 3.6 microm in the vertical direction, which correlated in part with accentuated nuclei and nucleoli and perinucleolar halos in the H-E sections. In a linear discriminant analysis, the variables derived from the FFT images correctly discriminated 84.6% of the patients. Texture features derived from the gray level cooccurrence matrix were not able to separate the groups. CONCLUSION: Exploratory texture analysis by FFT was able to detect discrete alterations in the prickle cell layer in routine light microscopy slides of SLS patients. The structural changes identified by FFT may be related to abnormal cellular components associated with aberrant lipid metabolism.     

IgA-antigliadin antibodies in IgA mesangial nephropathy (Berger's disease).

Circulating IgA-antigliadin antibodies were detected with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in four of 121 patients (3%) who had IgA mesangial nephropathy and 14 of 17 children (82%) who had untreated coeliac disease. No positive cases were present in the 54 healthy subjects of the control group. Three patients who had IgA nephropathy and IgA-antigliadin antibodies underwent jejunal biopsy, and two showed mucosal atrophy. In these two patients urinary abnormalities, together with the IgA-antigliadin antibodies, disappeared completely after three months and five months, respectively, of following a gluten free diet. Circulating IgA immune complexes were found in most patients who had coeliac disease and Berger''s disease associated with IgA-antigliadin antibodies, suggesting overactivity of the B cells producing IgA in both conditions. By contrast, a circulating IgA rheumatoid factor was detectable in three of the four patients who had IgA nephropathy and asymptomatic coeliac disease but was always absent in children who had coeliac disease but did not show signs of renal disease. These results suggest that a more complex abnormality in the IgA immune response is necessary for renal disease to become manifest in patients who have gluten enteropathy.     

Evidence for a Cystic Fibrosis Enteropathy

BackgroundPrevious studies have suggested the existence of enteropathy in cystic fibrosis (CF), which may contribute to intestinal function impairment, a poor nutritional status and decline in lung function. This study evaluated enterocyte damage and intestinal inflammation in CF and studied its associations with nutritional status, CF-related morbidities such as impaired lung function and diabetes, and medication use.MethodsSixty-eight CF patients and 107 controls were studied. Levels of serum intestinal-fatty acid binding protein (I-FABP), a specific marker for enterocyte damage, were retrospectively determined. The faecal intestinal inflammation marker calprotectin was prospectively studied. Nutritional status, lung function (FEV1), exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI), CF-related diabetes (CFRD) and use of proton pump inhibitors (PPI) were obtained from the medical charts.ResultsSerum I-FABP levels were elevated in CF patients as compared with controls (p<0.001), and correlated negatively with FEV1 predicted value in children (r-.734, p<0.05). Faecal calprotectin level was elevated in 93% of CF patients, and correlated negatively with FEV1 predicted value in adults (r-.484, p<0.05). No correlation was found between calprotectin levels in faeces and sputum. Faecal calprotectin level was significantly associated with the presence of CFRD, EPI, and PPI use.ConclusionThis study demonstrated enterocyte damage and intestinal inflammation in CF patients, and provides evidence for an inverse correlation between enteropathy and lung function. The presented associations of enteropathy with important CF-related morbidities further emphasize the clinical relevance.     

Proteoglycan and proteome profiling of central human pulmonary fibrotic tissue utilizing miniaturized sample preparation: a feasibility study

The objective of this study was to isolate fibrotic cells from human lung biopsies taken from different central pulmonary locations. A comparison was made of cell morphology, proteoglycan- and protein-expression in mesenchymal cell cultures obtained from human bronchial biopsies from patients with asthmatic-like disorders. We isolated viable cells from 10 out of the 12 biopsies. The fibroblast-like cells were positive for the biomarker a-smooth muscle actin, indicating that the cells were in an activated state. Two different types of fibroblast-like cells were observed from human pulmonary connective tissue; one of contractile type with lamellipodia that facilitate migration and a second cell type with an increased cell size, which most likely is of a synthetic phenotype. This is the first evidence of alterations in the proteoglycan expression pattern of versican, perlecan, biglycan and decorin which can be linked to the pathophysiological state of asthmatics proven by a combination of solid-phase extraction by reversed phase and by peptide mass fingerprinting using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry. Protein expression analysis using two-dimensional electrophoresis was interfaced to miniaturized sample preparation techniques using microcapillary extraction. Four protein groups were identified; cytoskeletal, adhesion, scavenger and metabolic proteins. These patient's proteomes showed a high degree of heterogeneity between patients but larger homogeneity within biopsies derived from different locations of the same patient.     

Alpha gliadin antibody levels: a serological test for coeliac disease.

The diagnostic value in coeliac disease of circulating antibodies to casein, crude gliadin, and alpha gliadin was assessed using an adaption of the enzyme linked immunosorbent assay system. alpha Gliadin was the only antigen which consistently separated 26 patients with untreated coeliac disease from 26 normal controls and 13 patients with chronic inflammatory bowel disease. The mean assay index for the 26 patients was 3.1 (SD 1.2) compared with 1.05 (0.5) for the normal controls and 1.1 (0.6) for patients with chronic inflammatory bowel disease. The alpha gliadin antibody levels of six patients with coeliac disease who had maintained a gluten free diet for at least two years were not significantly higher than normal (1.0 (0.4)). The validity of the test was determined in 90 consecutive patients who were being investigated for the presence of coeliac disease. Levels of alpha gliadin antibody were raised in 36 out of 44 patients found to have histologically proved coeliac disease and in six out of 46 subjects whose jejunal mucosa was normal. Serial alpha gliadin concentrations were measured in 12 patients with coeliac disease who had repeat jejunal biopsies performed six months after starting a gluten free diet. The levels of antibody fell in seven of the eight patients whose jejunal mucosa improved on maintaining the diet. They remained raised in four patients who did not adhere to the diet and whose mucosa did not improve. Although a test measuring alpha gliadin antibodies is unlikely to replace jejunal biopsy in the diagnosis of coeliac disease it may be useful in screening for the disease among outpatients.     

Autoantibodies to Harmonin and Villin Are Diagnostic Markers in Children with IPEX Syndrome

Autoantibodies to enterocyte antigens harmonin (75 kDa USH1C protein) and villin (actin-binding 95 kDa protein) are associated with the Immune dysregulation, Polyendocrinopathy, Enteropathy, X-linked (IPEX) syndrome. In this study we evaluated the diagnostic value of harmonin and villin autoantibodies in IPEX and IPEX-like syndromes. Harmonin and villin autoantibodies were measured by a novel Luminescent-Immuno-Precipitation-System (LIPS) quantitative assay, in patients with IPEX, IPEX-like syndrome, Primary Immunodeficiencies (PID) with enteropathy, all diagnosed by sequencing of the FOXP3 gene, and in type 1 diabetes (T1D), celiac disease and healthy blood donors as control groups. Harmonin and villin autoantibodies were detected in 12 (92%) and 6 (46%) of 13 IPEX patients, and in none of the IPEX-like, PID, T1D, celiac patients, respectively. All IPEX patients, including one case with late and atypical clinical presentation, had either harmonin and/or villin autoantibodies and tested positive for enterocyte antibodies by indirect immunofluorescence. When measured in IPEX patients in remission after immunosuppressive therapy or hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, harmonin and villin autoantibodies became undetectable or persisted at low titers in all cases but one in whom harmonin autoantibodies remained constantly high. In one patient, a peak of harmonin antibodies paralleled a relapse phase of enteropathy. Our study demonstrates that harmonin and villin autoantibodies, measured by LIPS, are sensitive and specific markers of IPEX, differentiate IPEX, including atypical cases, from other early childhood disorders associated with enteropathy, and are useful for screening and clinical monitoring of affected children.     

Bifidobacterium longum CECT 7347 modulates immune responses in a gliadin-induced enteropathy animal model

Coeliac disease (CD) is an autoimmune disorder triggered by gluten proteins (gliadin) that involves innate and adaptive immunity. In this study, we hypothesise that the administration of Bifidobacterium longum CECT 7347, previously selected for reducing gliadin immunotoxic effects in vitro, could exert protective effects in an animal model of gliadin-induced enteropathy. The effects of this bacterium were evaluated in newborn rats fed gliadin alone or sensitised with interferon (IFN)-γ and fed gliadin. Jejunal tissue sections were collected for histological, NFκB mRNA expression and cytokine production analyses. Leukocyte populations and T-cell subsets were analysed in peripheral blood samples. The possible translocation of the bacterium to different organs was determined by plate counting and the composition of the colonic microbiota was quantified by real-time PCR. Feeding gliadin alone reduced enterocyte height and peripheral CD4+ cells, but increased CD4+/Foxp3+ T and CD8+ cells, while the simultaneous administration of B. longum CECT 7347 exerted opposite effects. Animals sensitised with IFN-γ and fed gliadin showed high cellular infiltration, reduced villi width and enterocyte height. Sensitised animals also exhibited increased NFκB mRNA expression and TNF-α production in tissue sections. B. longum CECT 7347 administration increased NFκB expression and IL-10, but reduced TNF-α, production in the enteropathy model. In sensitised gliadin-fed animals, CD4+, CD4+/Foxp3+ and CD8+ T cells increased, whereas the administration of B. longum CECT 7347 reduced CD4+ and CD4+/Foxp3+ cell populations and increased CD8+ T cell populations. The bifidobacterial strain administered represented between 75-95% of the total bifidobacteria isolated from all treated groups, and translocation to organs was not detected. These findings indicate that B. longum attenuates the production of inflammatory cytokines and the CD4+ T-cell mediated immune response in an animal model of gliadin-induced enteropathy.     

Scanning electron microscopy study of small bowel biopsies in chronic diarrhoea in childhood.

In this study we have compared the results of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with Light- and Stereomicroscopy in a series of small bowel biopsies in children. In 9 cases displaying features of partial or subtotal atrophy, Light and Dissecting-Microscopy yielded similar results. The distinction between coeliac and non-coeliac chronic diarrhoea was only possible on clinical grounds, and by the immunological detection of specific antibodies. On SEM however coeliac patients showed characteristic alterations consisting of: absence of villi; prominent crypt outlets resulting in a mosaic appearance; concentric furrows running all around the openings; and downy brush feature at high power. The microvilli were loosely distributed and had an irregular pleomorphic outline; they often displayed a drumstick swelling of the tip and were bent. In contrast, non-coeliac chronic diarrhoea cases were characterized by a thick mucous layer on the mucosal surface, that made it impossible to visualize further changes. Peculiar vascular changes in lymphangiectasia and in sickle beta thalassemia could be detected only by Light Microscopy. In addition, in the lymphangiectasia case SEM allowed the detection of enteroadherent bacteria; and in the lambliasis case, of pseudomembranes. Absence of glycocalyx was noted both in controls and in patients. The results of this study point to a diagnostic utility of SEM particularly in the differential diagnosis of chronic diarrhoea; moreover they suggest that enteroadherent bacteria may not be pathogenic and that the absence of glycocalyx is not specific for allergic enteropathy as previously claimed.     

Electron microscopic observation of cytoskeletal frame structures and detection of tubulin on the apical region of Cryptosporidium parvum sporozoites

Cryptosporidium parvum is an intracellular protozoan parasite belonging to the phylum Apicomplexa, and a major cause of waterborne gastroenteritis throughout the world. Invasive zoites of apicomplexan parasites, including C. parvum, are thought to have characteristic organelles on the apical apex; however, compared with other parasites, the cytoskeletal ultrastructure of C. parvum zoites is poorly understood. Thus, in the present study, we ultrastructurally examined C. parvum sporozoites using electron microscopy to clarify the framework of invasive stages. Consequently, at the apical end of sporozoites, 3 apical rings and an electron-dense collar were seen. Two thick central microtubules were seen further inside sporozoites and extended to the posterior region. Using anti-alpha and -beta tubulin antibodies generated from sea urchin and rat brain, both antibodies cross-reacted at the apical region of sporozoites in immunofluorescent morphology. The molecular mass of C. parvum alpha tubulin antigen was 50 kDa by Western blotting and the observed apical cytoskeletal structures were shown to be composed of alpha tubulin by immunoelectron microscopy. These results suggested that C. parvum sporozoites were clearly different in their cytoskeletal structure from those of other apicomplexan parasites.     

Impact of Actin Rearrangement and Degranulation on the Membrane Structure of Primary Mast Cells: A Combined Atomic Force and Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy Investigation

Degranulation of bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs) triggered by antigens (e.g., 2,4-dinitrophenylated bovine serum albumin (DNP-BSA) and secretagogues (e.g., poly-L-lysine) was investigated by combined atomic force microscopy (AFM) and laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM). This combination enables the simultaneous visualization and correlation of membrane morphology with cytoskeletal actin arrangement and intracellular granules. Two degranulation mechanisms and detailed membrane structures that directly corresponded to the two stimuli were revealed. In DNP-BSA triggered activation, characteristic membrane ridges formed in accordance with the rearrangement of underlying F-actin networks. Individual granules were visualized after they released their contents, indicating a “kiss-and-run” pathway. In BMMCs stimulated by poly-L-lysine, lamellopodia and filopodia were observed in association with the F-actin assemblies at and near the cell periphery, whereas craters were observed on the central membrane lacking F-actin. These craters represent a new membrane feature resulting from the “kiss-and-merge” granule fusion. This work provides what we believe is important new insight into the local membrane structures in correlation with the cytoskeleton arrangement and detailed degranulation processes.     

The chondrocyte cytoskeleton in mature articular cartilage: structure and distribution of actin, tubulin, and vimentin filaments.

We investigated the structure of the chondrocyte cytoskeleton in intact tissue sections of mature bovine articular cartilage using confocal fluorescence microscopy complemented by protein extraction and immunoblotting analysis. Actin microfilaments were present inside the cell membrane as a predominantly cortical structure. Vimentin and tubulin spanned the cytoplasm from cell to nuclear membrane, the vimentin network appearing finer compared to tubulin. These cytoskeletal structures were present in chondrocytes from all depth zones of the articular cartilage. However, staining intensity varied from zone to zone, usually showing more intense staining for the filament systems at the articular surface compared to the deeper zones. These results obtained on fluorescently labeled sections were also corroborated by protein contents extracted and observed by immunoblotting. The observed cytoskeletal structures are compatible with some of the proposed cellular functions of these systems and support possible microenvironmental regulation of the cytoskeleton, including that due to physical forces from load-bearing, which are known to vary through the depth layers of articular cartilage.     

Dissipation of amino acid concentration gradients within rabbit ileal enterocytes

The distribution of alanine, lysine and methionine within the cytoplasm of functionally mature enterocytes in rabbit ileum was measured by autoradiography after a short period of contact with tritiated substrate. Pronounced intracellular concentration gradients were noted for alanine and lysine, the concentration of these amino acids in the apical part of the enterocyte being 2- to 3-times that found near the base of the cell. No such concentration gradient was seen for methionine. Subsequent superfusion of the mucosal surface of the tissue with substrate-free medium caused intracellular concentration gradients for alanine and lysine to disappear. There was also a decrease in the enterocyte content of all three amino acids unassociated with backflux into the intestinal lumen. The ease with which intracellular concentration gradients for alanine and lysine can be manipulated is used as an argument against the possibility that their creation results from selective attachment to cytoplasmic structures in the apical part of the enterocyte.     

HLA-DR typing in coeliac disease: evidence for genetic heterogeneity.

Sixty nine propositi from a family study of coeliac disease were typed for HLA-DR antigens. Sixty three (91%) were found to carry the antigen DR3, which was a significantly greater proportion (p = 9.6 X 10(-24] than among the 168 controls (26%). Concurrently 42 children with the disease were DR typed. Not only was the frequency of DR3 significantly increased in these patients (86% versus 26% in controls; p = 3.1 X 10(-12] but so also was the frequency of DR7 (patients 60%, controls 29%; p = 5.8 X 10(-4]. When those propositi whose coeliac disease presented before the age of 20 were combined with the childhood coeliac group and a comparison made between these patients and the remainder of the propositi, all of whom presented when they were older than 20, the childhood onset group had a significant excess of DR7 (p = 2.2 X 10(-3] and a significant deficiency of DR2 (p = 3.5 X 10(-3]. These findings indicate that childhood coeliac disease and adult coeliac disease are genetically heterogeneous.     

The imbalance between metalloproteinases and their tissue inhibitors is involved in the pathogenesis of dermatitis herpetiformis

Dermatitis herpetiformis (DH) is a subepidermal autoimmune disease characterized by skin and intestinal lesions consistent with coeliac disease. There are also some data that metalloproteinases (MMPs) are involved in the development of skin lesions in DH, however their exact role in this process is not fully understood. The aim of the study was to investigate whether MMPs and their inhibitors are involved in pathogenesis of DH. Skin biopsies were taken from 13 patients with active DH and from 10 healthy subjects. The localization and expression of MMPs and TIMPs were examined by immunohistochemistry. MMPs expression was detected in basal keratinocytes and in the whole epidermis in all of the DH subjects. Neutrophils in microabscesses and in blister fluid were also positive for MMPs. Expression of TIMPs was moderate or weak in all examined biopsies. Our results allow us to conclude that imbalance between these enzymes takes an important role in the pathogenesis of DH.     

Use of laser microprobe mass analysis (LAMMA) for localizing multiple elements in soft and hard tissues

The potential of laser microprobe mass analysis (LAMMA) as a sensitive microanalytical technique was explored in applications relevant to nephrology. Aluminum and associated elements, such as iron, were localized in fresh tissue biopsies obtained from uremic patients treatment by chronic hemodialysis. The LAMMA was applied to serum, liver, bone, and parathyroid glands of such patients. In addition, we used LAMMA to evaluate the specificity and sensitivity of routine histochemistry, in particular on human bone sections stained by the aluminon method. The high, multielemental sensitivity and molecular microprobe potential of LAMMA established important advantages over other microchemical methods forin situ analysis at the micron level in histological sections.     

Role of bone marrow imprints in haematological diagnosis: a detailed study of 3781 cases

X. Gong, X. Lu, X. Wu, R. Xu, Q. Tang, G. Xu, L. Wang, X. Zhang and X. Zhao Role of bone marrow imprints in haematological diagnosis: a detailed study of 3781 cases Objectives: To explore the role of imprints in routine bone marrow (BM) diagnosis. Methods: The cellularity and diagnostic accuracy of BM imprints, aspirate smears and trephine biopsy sections from 3781 patients were assessed using routine cytochemical staining. Seventy‐nine cases of lymphoma and 114 cases of plasma cell myeloma (PCM) were selected for correlation analysis of tumour cell infiltration patterns. Another 21 cases of lymphoma were selected to detect t(14;18)(q32;q21) and t(11;14)(q13;q32) by fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) on BM imprints, and the G‐banding technique was performed for comparison. Results: BM imprints were better than smears for evaluating cellularity. In the BM imprint group, diagnostic accuracy for metastatic carcinoma, myeloproliferative neoplasm, myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative neoplasm and PCM was better than in the smear group, while accuracy for megaloblastic anaemia, acute myeloid leukaemia, refractory cytopenia with unilineage or multilineage dysplasia, refractory anaemia with excess blasts and lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma was higher than in the section group, but not statistically different from the smear group. Good correlation of infiltration patterns of lymphoma and myeloma cells was found between BM imprints and sections (r = 0.90 and 0.78, respectively). Detection of t(11;14)(q13;q32) by FISH on imprints was higher than G‐banding analysis. Conclusions: BM imprints show features of both smears and trephine sections. Imprints are superior to smears for evaluation of cellularity, and are also better than sections for analysis of cytological changes. In addition, FISH on BM imprints markedly improves the identification of chromosomal abnormalities.