Abstract
BACKGROUND: Hodgkin's lymphoma is characterized by the presence of mono-nucleated Hodgkin cells and bi- to multi-nucleated Reed-Sternberg cells. We have recently shown telomere dysfunction and aberrant synchronous/asynchronous cell divisions during the transition of Hodgkin cells to Reed-Sternberg cells.1 DESIGN AND METHODS: To determine whether overall changes in nuclear architecture affect genomic instability during the transition of Hodgkin cells to Reed-Sternberg cells, we investigated the nuclear organization of chromosomes in these cells. RESULTS: Three-dimensional fluorescent in situ hybridization revealed irregular nuclear positioning of individual chromosomes in Hodgkin cells and, more so, in Reed-Sternberg cells. We characterized an increasingly unequal distribution of chromosomes as mono-nucleated cells became multi-nucleated cells, some of which also contained chromosome-poor 'ghost' cell nuclei. Measurements of nuclear chromosome positions suggested chromosome overlaps in both types of cells. Spectral karyotyping then revealed both aneuploidy and complex chromosomal rearrangements: multiple breakage-bridge-fusion cycles were at the origin of the multiple rearranged chromosomes. This conclusion was challenged by super resolution three-dimensional structured illumination imaging of Hodgkin and Reed-Sternberg nuclei. Three-dimensional super resolution microscopy data documented inter-nuclear DNA bridges in multi-nucleated cells but not in mono-nucleated cells. These bridges consisted of chromatids and chromosomes shared by two Reed-Sternberg nuclei. The complexity of chromosomal rearrangements increased as Hodgkin cells developed into multi-nucleated cells, thus indicating tumor progression and evolution in Hodgkin's lymphoma, with Reed-Sternberg cells representing the highest complexity in chromosomal rearrangements in this disease. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to demonstrate nuclear remodeling and associated genomic instability leading to the generation of Reed-Sternberg cells of Hodgkin's lymphoma. We defined nuclear remodeling as a key feature of Hodgkin's lymphoma, highlighting the relevance of nuclear architecture in cancer.