Objective: To investigate the relationship between the frequency of BCL-2/IgH rearrangement in peripheral blood cells of healthy Chinese individuals of Han nationality located in Zhejiang area and the low incidence of follicular lymphoma (FL).
Methods: Nested-PCR and direct DNA sequencing were used to detect the Bcl-2/IgH rearrangement in peripheral blood cells of 196 healthy individuals. DNA sequences involved were then searched and aligned in NCBI database to confine the broken points in major breakpoint region and the IgH segments involved.
Results: First, in this sample the frequency of BCL-2/IgH translocation in Chinese individuals of Han nationality located in Zhejiang area is 9.66%, being much lower than that in North America and Europe countries. Second, the breakpoints tend to fall into 3 clusters: 3055, 3116 and 3165 bp. Usage of J6 segment is most common. Third, There are different subclones of BCL-2/IgH rearrangements in the same individual.
Conclusion: The low frequency of BCL-2/IgH translocation in healthy Chinese individuals of Han nationality located in Zhejiang area may be one of the reasons for the difference in the incidence of FL between China and Western countries.