Cell surface glycoprotein analysis: a diagnostic tool in human leukemias.

We have radiolabelled surface glycoproteins of different types of leukemic cell. The labelled proteins were separated by polyacrylamide slab gel electrophoresis and visualized by fluorography. Surface glycoprotein patterns discriminatory for acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) were found. We conclude that the analysis of the surface glycoprotein profile provides a useful method for the classification of leukemic cells according to cell type and stage of differentiation.