COMBINED FLUORESCENCE IN SITU HYBRIDIZATION AND CYTOFLUOROMETRIC ANALYSIS OF NUMERICAL CHROMOSOMAL ABERRATIONS IN SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMAS OF THE TONGUE

DNA cytofluorometry and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with centromeric repetitive probes of chromosomes 1, 7, 11, 17, X and Y were used to detect numerical chromosomal aberrations in 13 squamous cell carcinomas of the tongue. In 4 of the 6 DNA-diploid tumors examined, significant numerical aberrations in at least 1 of the chromosomes were detected. The main line of 1 tumor showed trisomy 1 and the other 3 tumors had significant sublines that showed trisomy or monosomy of the 1 or 2 chromosomes examined. No common specific aberrations were detected in these tumors. Cytofluorometrically we found polyploidy in all 4 of the tumors with numerical chromosomal aberrations. These results suggest that subpopulations which are aneuploid at the chromosome level arise preferentially from DNA-diploid tumors with polyploidy before the ploidy of the main line shifts to overt DNA-aneuploidy. In all of the 7 DNA-aneuploid tumors examined, we detected numerical chromosomal aberrations. Most of the aberrations were thought to occur after tetraploidization because a gain in chromosomal copy number including tetrasomy was common. In 3 DNA-aneuploid tumors, however, the main line showed disomy 11, whereas the other chromosomes examined had 3 or more copies. In 1 of the 3 tumors there was a significant subline of monosomy 11. In these 3 tumors disomy 11 may have been preceded by a DNA-diploid stage with monosomy 11 before tetraploidization.