Nucleoli of peripheral blood lymphocytes in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Morphological and cytochemical changes of the nuclei were investigated by the method of Smetana in peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia nontreated and treated with Leukeran. The material was divided into groups according to Rai. In the lymphocytes of the patients with nucleolar coefficient and the proportion of dense nucleoli and micronucleoli were increased, while at the same time, the proportion of ring-shaped nucleoli, the main form of nucleoli in the lymphocytes of healthy subjects, was decreased. The changes in the values of different nucleolar parameters indicated the successive stages of the diseases and served as an auxiliary distinctive feature of leukemic lymphocytes.