GLYCOPHORIN-A AS A CELL-SURFACE MARKER OF EARLY ERYTHROID-DIFFERENTIATION IN ACUTE-LEUKEMIA

We show here that the leukemic blast cells from three patients of a total of 15 subsequently diagnosed as having acute leukemia express on their surface the major red cell sialoglycoprotein, glycophorin A (GP‐A). This was demonstrated (1) by indirect immunofluorescence using rabbit anti GP‐A antiserum and (2) by immune precipitation of GP‐A from surface radiolabelled leukemic cells. Since GP‐A is exclusively present on erythroid cells and their precursors, these findings indicate that a higher proportion of the blast leukemias than previously recognized show features of early erythroid differentiation. Copyright © 1979 Wiley‐Liss, Inc., A Wiley Company