Proliferative characteristics and sister chromatid exchange (SCE) of colony-forming cells (CFU-S) in acute myelogenous leukemia.

Sister chromatid exchange (SCE) and cell cycle progression of colony-forming cells (CFU-S) from patients with acute myelogenous leukemia were studied using bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation and sister chromatid differential staining. The mean SCE rate of CFU-S was 7.99, which is similar to that reported for human peripheral blood lymphocytes. Cultures treated with BrdU at culture initiation and then harvested 72-120 hr later indicated a cell cycle time (TC) of approximately 60 hr. However, cells allowed to proliferate for 72-120 hr prior to the addition of BrdU showed TC values of 12-36 hr. Analysis of serial cultures from one patient revealed a heterogeneous population with a mean TC of 19.5 hr. These cell cycle times are considerably shorter than previously published reports and suggest that leukemic cells have the potential to divide rapidly.