Dermatoglyphics of the XYY Syndrome

The presence of an extra Y chromosome in Man results in a condition termed the XYY Syndrome. Such individuals are tall, exhibit aggressive behavior, and may be mentally retarded. XYY patients are usually discovered after they have committed a crime. Even though relatively few XYY patients have been recorded so far in the literature the incidence of this condition in US males has been estimated at 1 in 300. Thus the majority of XYY's lead normal lives, directing their excess aggression into legal channels. For those who do not do so, the earlier corrective educational therapy is constituted the better the result. Since dermatoglyphics are affected by chromosomal aberrations there is a need to examine the dermatoglyphics of XYY patients in order to establish specific dermatoglyphic features that can be used for diagnosis at birth.     

台湾太鲁阁(Truku)族群肤纹学研究

本文报道台湾太鲁阁(Truku)的肤纹参数, 样本包括100名男性和100名女性。研究方法以《ADA标准-CDA版本》为依据、项目以《CDA标准》的Ⅱ级模式样本为依据。还有atd、tPD、猿线、指三角、同名指指纹对应的情况等, 见到非随机组合的现象。这是首次对太鲁阁人肤纹作Ⅱ级模式样本的调查, 为医学、遗传学和人类学等提供Ⅱ级模式样本。肤纹是人类的生物学性状, 由遗传和环境所致。指纹花样有每人每指各不相同和终身稳定两大特点, 成为个人身份鉴定的证明。肤纹在群体间有特异性, 在民族间有明显的差异。研究群体或民族的肤纹, 可以发现人类肤纹的遗传标记。     

Leukaemia complicating treatment for Hodgkin's disease: the experience of the British National Lymphoma Investigation.

OBJECTIVE--To determine the incidence of and risk factors for the development of secondary acute leukaemia and myelodysplasia in patients treated in British National Lymphoma Investigation''s studies of Hodgkin''s disease since 1970. PATIENTS--2676 Patients entered into Hodgkin''s disease studies between February 1970 and November 1986. Data accrued up to November 1988 were analysed, ensuring a minimum follow up period of two years. DESIGN--Retrospective analysis of multicentre trial data by case-control and life table methods. RESULTS--17 Cases of secondary leukaemia were recorded in this group of 2676 patients, giving an overall risk at 15 years of 1.7%. The risks of leukaemia after chemotherapy alone and chemotherapy with radiotherapy were not significantly different. The risk of leukaemia increased sharply with the amount of treatment given as measured by the number of attempts at treatment. The 15 year risks of leukaemia were 0.2%, 2.3%, and 8.1% for patients receiving one, two, or three or more attempts at treatment. The highest risk, 22.8% at 15 years, was observed in patients treated with lomustine (CCNU), and a case-control study suggested that this was an independent risk factor. The risk of secondary leukaemia was largely related to the overall quantity of treatment, although exposure to lomustine seemed to be an important risk factor. Treatment with both drugs and radiation was not more leukaemogenic than treatment with drugs alone. The greatest risk of secondary leukaemia was seen in multiply treated patients who were unlikely to be cured of Hodgkin''s disease. CONCLUSIONS--Avoidance of secondary leukaemia should be a minor factor in the choice of treatment for Hodgkin''s disease.     

Epipodophyllotoxins,alkylating agents,and radiation and risk of secondary leukaemia after childhood cancer.

OBJECTIVE--To investigate the incidence and aetiology of secondary leukaemia after childhood cancer in Britain. DESIGN--Cohort study and a case-control study. SETTING--Britain and population based National Register of Childhood Tumours. SUBJECTS--Cohort of 16,422 one year survivors of childhood cancer diagnosed in Britain between 1962 and 1983, among whom 22 secondary leukaemias were observed. A case-control study of 26 secondary leukaemias observed among survivors of childhood cancer diagnosed in Britain between 1940 and 1983; 96 controls were selected matched for sex, type of first cancer, age at first cancer, and interval to diagnosis of secondary leukaemia. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Dose of radiation averaged over patients'' active bone marrow and total accumulated dose of epipodophyllotoxins, alkylating agents, vinca alkaloids, antimetabolites, and antibiotics (mg/m2) given for the original cancer. RESULTS--Cumulative risk of secondary leukaemia within the cohort did not exceed 0.5% over the initial five years beyond one year survival, except that after non-Hodgkin''s lymphomas 1.4% of patients developed secondary leukaemia. Corresponding figure for patients treated for non-Hodgkin''s lymphomas in the early 1980s was 4%. The relative risk of secondary leukaemia increased significantly with exposure to epipodophyllotoxins and dose of radiation averaged over patients'' active bone marrow. Ten patients developed leukaemia after having an epipodophyllotoxin-teniposide in nine cases, etoposide in one. Chromosomal translocations involving 11q23 were observed relating to two secondary leukaemias from a total of six for which there were successful cytogenetic studies after administration of an epipodophyllotoxin. CONCLUSIONS--Epipodophyllotoxins acting alone or together with alkylating agents or radiation seem to be involved in secondary leukaemia after childhood cancer.     

Dermatoglyphics in childhood leukemia

The dermatoglyphics of 54 leukemic children do not differ significantly from those of 25 mothers and 592 unrelated controls with respect to frequency of digital pattern types, position of axial triradius, or type of palmar flexion creases. These findings do not support the hypothesis that children with leukemia have an increased frequency of unusual dermal patterns, but suggest that the dermatoglyphics of leukemic children are not distinctive and therefore have no practical value in the diagnosis of childhood leukemia. Whatever factors are responsible for the development of leukemia in children, these factors do not appear regularly to affect the differentiation of the dermal ridges.     

Risk of second primary cancers after Hodgkin's disease by type of treatment: analysis of 2846 patients in the British National Lymphoma Investigation.

OBJECTIVE--To analyse the risk of second primary cancers during long term follow up of patients with Hodgkin''s disease. DESIGN--Cohort study. SETTING--The British National Lymphoma Investigation (a collaborative group of over 60 participating centres in Britain treating lymphomas). PATIENTS--2846 patients first treated for Hodgkin''s disease during 1970-87, for whom follow up was complete in 99.8%. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Second primary cancers; uniform pathology reviews confirmed the diagnosis of Hodgkin''s disease and of second primary non-Hodgkin''s lymphomas. RESULTS--113 second primary cancers occurred. Relative risk of cancer other than Hodgkin''s disease was 2.7 (95% confidence interval 2.3 to 3.3) compared with the general population, with significant risk of leukaemia (16.0(9.1 to 26.0)); non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma (16.8(9.8 to 26.9)); and cancers of the colon (3.2 (1.4 to 6.2)), lung (3.8 (2.6 to 5.4)), bone (15.1 (1.8 to 54.7)), and thyroid (9.4 (1.1 to 33.9)). Absolute excess risk associated with treatment was greater for solid tumours than for leukaemia and lymphomas. Relative risk of leukaemia increased soon after treatment, reaching a peak after five to nine years. It was increased substantially after chemotherapy (27.9 (12.7 to 52.9)), combined treatment with radiotherapy and chemotherapy (21.5 (7.9 to 46.8)), and relative to number of courses of chemotherapy but was not significantly increased after radiotherapy (2.5 (0.1 to 14.1)). Relative risk of non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma increased in the first five years after treatment and remained high but showed no clear relation with type or extent of treatment. Relative risk of solid tumours was less raised initially but increased throughout follow up and for lung cancer 10 years or more after entry was 8.3 (4.0 to 15.3). The risk of solid tumours increased after treatments including radiotherapy and after chemotherapy alone. The risk after chemotherapy increased significantly with time since first treatment. CONCLUSION--The risk of solid cancer, not of leukaemia, is the major long term hazard of treatment for Hodgkin''s disease, and this seemed to apply after chemotherapy as well as after radiotherapy. These risks of second cancers are important in choice of treatment and in follow up of patients, but they are small compared with the great improvements in survival which have been brought about by modern therapeutic methods for Hodgkin''s disease.     

A summary of mortality and incidence of cancer in men from the United Kingdom who participated in the United Kingdom's atmospheric nuclear weapon tests and experimental programmes

Altogether 22 347 men who participated in the United Kingdom''s atmospheric nuclear weapon tests and experimental programmes in Australia and the Pacific Ocean between 1952 and 1967 were identified from the archives of the Ministry of Defence and followed up. Their mortality and incidence of cancer were compared with those in 22 326 matched controls selected from the same archives. The risk of mortality in the participants relative to that in the controls was 1·01 for all causes and 0·96 for all neoplasms. Thirty eight causes of death were examined separately. Significant differences in mortality were found for leukaemia, multiple myeloma, and other injury and poisoning, with higher rates in the participants, and for cancers of the prostate and kidney and chronic bronchitis, with higher rates in the controls. The mortality from leukaemia and multiple myeloma in the participants was slightly greater than would have been expected from national values (standardised mortality ratios of 113 and 111, respectively), but in the controls it was substantially lower (standardised mortality ratios of 32 and 0, respectively). Examination of the rates of leukaemia and multiple myeloma in groups of participants showed very little difference between groups characterised by recorded doses of external radiation or type of test participation and failed to indicate any specific hazard. Evidence obtained from participants who reported themselves voluntarily (or were reported by relatives or friends) suggested that 17% of participants may have been omitted from the main study group but that any resulting bias was small.Most of the differences observed between the participants and controls were interpreted as due to chance, but some may be due to differences in smoking habits. Participation in the test programme did not seem, in itself, to have caused any detectable effect on the participants'' expectation of life, apart from possibly causing small risks of developing leukaemia and multiple myeloma.     

Malignant Disease in Children whose Mothers had Chickenpox,Mumps, or Rubella in Pregnancy

To test the hypothesis that leukaemia may follow virus infection in pregnancy an analysis was made of deaths which occurred in a cohort of children born in 1951 and 1952 after pregnancies in which the mothers suffered virus infections—chickenpox or mumps at any stage of gestation or rubella in the first 18 weeks. All deaths which occurred between the children''s second birthday and the end of 1971 were studied.Two deaths from leukaemia occurred among the children whose mothers suffered from chickenpox, a significant excess. There were no deaths from leukaemia among the other children, but the causes of the two deaths after maternal mumps—Ewing''s tumour and Still''s disease—are noted because of their rarity.     

Population based survival rates for childhood cancer in Britain, 1980-91.

OBJECTIVES--To investigate the survival of children with cancer diagnosed during 1980-91 in order to assess the impact of developments in medical care on a population basis. DESIGN--Retrospective cohort study. SETTING--Great Britain. SUBJECTS--14973 children with cancer diagnosed during 1980-91 and included in the population based National Registry of Childhood Tumours. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Actuarial survival rates. RESULTS--For all cancers combined, two year survival increased from 66% to 76% between 1980-2 and 1989-91, and five year survival increased from 57% to 65% between 1980-2 and 1986-8. Significant increases in survival rates occurred among children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, acute nonlymphocytic leukaemia, retinoblastoma, osteosarcoma, Ewing''s sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, and malignant gonadal germ cell tumours. No trend in survival was seen for children with Hodgkin''s disease, central nervous system tumours, neuroblastoma, or Wilms''s tumour. CONCLUSIONS--Nearly two thirds of children who have cancer diagnosed can now expect to survive at least 10 years.     

Dermatoglyphics in beta-thalassemia major]

The features of dermatoglyphics in 39 children with beta-thalassemia major and in 47 their parents are studied. The control were 70 healthy children. The patients with beta-thalassemia had more often the prevailence of whorls over other finger patterns. There was an increase of the "atd" angle and some increase in the ridge of counts. Parents had also an increase of the amount of whorls, but this increase was less pronounced than under beta-thalassemia. The changes of the dermatoglyphics in parents of children affected with beta-thalassemia major are suggested to ba a phenotypic feature of heterozygous carrier of the mutant gene.     

Paternal radiation exposure and leukaemia in offspring: the Ontario case-control study.

OBJECTIVES--To test the hypothesis that there is an association between childhood leukaemia and the occupational exposure of fathers to ionising radiation before a child''s conception. DESIGN--Case-control study with eight matched controls per case. SETTING--Regions of Ontario, Canada, with an operating nuclear facility. SUBJECTS--Cases were children (age 0-14) who died from or were diagnosed as having leukaemia from 1950 to 1988 and were born to mothers living in the vicinity of an operating nuclear facility. Controls were identified from birth certificates, matched by date of birth and residence at birth. There were 112 cases and 890 controls. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Paternal radiation exposure was determined by a record linkage to the Canadian National Dose Registry. RESULTS--Six fathers of cases and 53 fathers of controls had had a total whole body dose > 0.0 mSv before the child''s conception, resulting in an odds ratio of 0.87 (95% confidence interval 0.32 to 2.34). There was no evidence of an increased leukaemia risk in relation to any exposure period (lifetime or six months or three months before conception) or exposure type (total whole body dose, external whole body dose, or tritium dose), except for radon exposure to uranium miners, which had a large odds ratio that was not significantly different from the null value. CONCLUSIONS--The findings of this study in Ontario did not support the hypothesis that childhood leukaemia is associated with the occupational exposure of fathers to ionising radiation before the child''s conception.     

对白马藏族的皮纹学研究

作者对四川省平武县的488例白马藏族健康人的皮纹进行了研究,其中男性246人,女性242人。将其皮纹参数与汉族、土族、彝族等民族的皮纹比较,经X~2及u检验处理,发现该民族的皮纹基本符合黄色人种的特点,但与汉、土、彝、藏诸族也存在若干统计学差异。认为若希冀皮纹学研究对该民族的识别有所帮助,需扩大样本,选择对照进一步研究。     

Trends in childhood leukaemia in the Nordic countries in relation to fallout from atmospheric nuclear weapons testing.

OBJECTIVE--To obtain further information about the risks of childhood leukaemia after exposure to ionising radiation at low doses and low dose rates before or after birth or to the father''s testes shortly before conception. DESIGN--Observational study of trends in incidence of childhood leukaemia in relation to estimated radiation exposures due to fallout from atmospheric nuclear weapons testing during the 1950s and 1960s. SETTING--Nordic countries. SUBJECTS--Children aged under 15 years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Incidence rates of leukaemia by age at diagnosis, sex, country, and calendar year of diagnosis or year of birth; exposure category; relation between leukaemia and exposure for children aged 0-14 and 0-4 separately. RESULTS--During the high fallout period the average estimated dose equivalent to the fetal red bone marrow was around 140 mu Sv and the average annual testicular dose 140 mu Sv. There was little evidence of increased incidence of leukaemia among children born in these years. Doses to the red bone marrow of a child after birth were higher, and during the high exposure period children would have been subjected to an additional dose equivalent of around 1500 mu Sv, similar to doses received by children in several parts of central and eastern Europe owing to the Chernobyl accident and about 50% greater than the annual dose equivalent to the red bone marrow of a child from natural radiation. leukaemia incidence and red marrow dose was not related overall, but rates of leukaemia in the high exposure period were slightly higher than in the surrounding medium exposure period (relative risk for ages 0-14: 1.07, 95% confidence interval 1.00 to 1.14; for ages 0-4: 1.11, 1.00 to 1.24). CONCLUSIONS--Current predicted risks of childhood leukaemia after exposure to radiation are not greatly underestimated for low dose rate exposures.     

Characteristics of digital and palmar dermatoglyphics in people of different ages living in the territory of the Ukrainian Polesie]

Examination of dermatoglyphs in people aged 50-103 living in the territory of the Ukrainian Polesie has revealed age differences in some indices of dermatoglyphics: total crest count, palmar angle, character of the cutaneous pattern of fingers. It assumed that these differences have arisen as a consequence of selection of persons characterized by high reliability of the genotype functioning. The data obtained permit supposing that it is possible to use dermatoglyphics for determining hereditary predisposition of people to longevity.     

Paternal preconceptional radiation exposure in the nuclear industry and leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in young people in Scotland.

OBJECTIVE--To determine if a relation exists between paternal exposure to relatively high levels of radiation in the Scottish nuclear industry and the risk of leukaemia and non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma is subsequently conceived children. DESIGN--Matched case-control study with three controls for each case. SETTING--The whole of Scotland. SUBJECTS--The fathers of 1024 children with leukaemia and 237 children with non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma diagnosed in Scotland below the age of 25 among those born in Scotland since nuclear operations began (in 1958) and the fathers of 3783 randomly chosen controls. The fathers of 80 children with leukaemia and 16 with non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma in north Cumbria were also covered since some workers at one Scottish nuclear site live over the border in that area. Details of all fathers were then matched against records of the nuclear industry. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Paternal preconceptional radiation exposures, particularly relatively high levels, both lifetime and in the six and three months before conception. RESULTS--No significant excess was observed in any subgroup and there was no significant trend: fathers of three controls but no cases were exposed to lifetime preconceptional levels of 100 mSv or greater (Fisher''s exact p value 0.84). In the six months before conception, fathers of two cases and three controls received 10 mSv or more, odds ratio 2.3 (95% confidence interval 0.31 to 17.24). In the three months before conception the fathers of one case and two controls received 5 mSv or more, odds ratio 1.7 (0.10 to 30.76). The results for leukaemia and non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma combined were similar. CONCLUSIONS--No significant excess of leukaemia or of leukaemia and non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma was found at any radiation level in any preconceptional period.     

H-rosette formation in T-cell-proliferative diseases.

In health up to 6% of human lymphocytes will form rosettes with homologous group O rhesus-negative erythrocytes (H rosettes). Increased numbers of H rosettes were found in T-cell-proliferative diseases-- namely, infectious mononucleosis, Sézary''s syndrome, and T-cell leukaemia. H-rosette formation is thus a marker for a subpopulation of T lymphocytes, and this easily performed test of T-cell activation may have clinical value in characterising changes in blood lymphocyte populations in disease.     

中国人群肤纹的主成分分析

近年来 ,我国学者多将中国人群分为南、北两大类群。作者对我国 5 9个人群的肤纹进行主成分分析。结果表明 ,根据肤纹特征 ,可将中国人分为 6个族群 ,除北方族群、南方族群外 ,存在着新疆族群与西藏族群。新疆族群与北方族群相比 ,斗型率低 ,尺箕、桡箕率高 ,小鱼际区与指间区Ⅱ、Ⅲ真实花纹率高。西藏族群斗型率高、尺箕率低。北方族群与南方族群相比 ,指纹嵴线总数、小鱼际区与指间区Ⅲ真实花纹率高。此外 ,还存在南北族群间的过渡族群与南北混合族群。 8个汉族人群未能聚集 ,分散于各族群中。这表明 ,汉族与少数民族间、南北方民族间存在着肤纹基因的交流。将中华民族分为南北两大类群的观点可能过于简单化了。     

Surgery in Management of Patients with Leukaemia

Though leukaemia is not a “surgical” disease, the need for surgery in patients with leukaemia is increasing. Acute surgical problems in such patients present diagnostic difficulties, and accepted surgical principles do not necessarily apply in patients with very abnormal haematological and immunological features. The improved prognosis in some types of leukaemia means that elective surgical procedures, which formerly would not have been considered, may now be applicable just as they would be in patients with non-malignant conditions.Recent advances in the management of the leukaemias include several surgical procedures—for example, to facilitate intravenous or intrathecal therapy. Splenectomy is of value in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia when the correct indications are present, while early elective splenectomy, when no classical indications are present, may have a useful role in the management of patients with chronic granulocytic leukaemia.     

Case-control study of leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma among children aged 0-4 years living in west Berkshire and north Hampshire health districts.

OBJECTIVE--To investigate the relation between parental employment in the nuclear industry and childhood leukaemia and non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma. DESIGN--Case-control study. SETTING-West Berkshire and Basingstoke and North Hampshire District Health Authorities. SUBJECTS--54 children aged 0-4 years who had leukaemia or non-Hodgkin''s lymphoma diagnosed during 1972-89, who were born in the study area and were resident there when cancer was diagnosed. Six controls were selected for each case: four from hospital delivery registers and two from livebirth registers maintained by the NHS central register. Controls were matched for sex, date of birth (within six months), and area of residence at birth and time of diagnosis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Parents'' employment by the nuclear industry and exposure to ionising radiation at work. RESULTS--Five (9%) of the 54 cases and 14 (4%) of the 324 controls had fathers or mothers, or both, who had been employed by the nuclear industry (relative risk 2.2, 95% confidence interval 0.6 to 6.9). Nuclear industry employees who work in areas where exposure to radiation is possible are given film badges to monitor their exposure to external penetrating ionising radiation. Three fathers of cases and two fathers of controls (and no mothers of either) had been monitored in this way before their child was conceived (relative risk 9.0, 95% confidence interval 1.0 to 107.8). No father (of a case or control) had accumulated a recorded dose of more than 5 mSv before his child was conceived, and no father had been monitored at any time in the four years before his child was conceived. A dose-response relation was not evident among fathers who had been monitored. CONCLUSIONS--These results suggest that the children of fathers who had been monitored for exposure to external penetrating ionising radiation in the nuclear industry may be at increased risk of developing leukaemia before their fifth birthday. The finding is based on small numbers and could be due to chance. If the relationship is real the mechanisms are far from clear, except that the effect is unlikely to be due to external radiation; the possibility that it could be due to internal contamination by radioactive substances or some other exposure at work should be pursued. The above average rates of leukaemia in the study area cannot be accounted for by these findings.