PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - E Hodges
AU  - M T Krishna
AU  - C Pickard
AU  - J L Smith
TI  - Diagnostic role of tests for T cell receptor (TCR) genes
AID  - 10.1136/jcp.56.1.1
DP  - 2003 Jan 01
TA  - Journal of Clinical Pathology
PG  - 1--11
VI  - 56
IP  - 1
4099  - http://jcp.bmj.com/content/56/1/1.short
4100  - http://jcp.bmj.com/content/56/1/1.full
SO  - J Clin Pathol2003 Jan 01; 56
AB  - Rapid advances in molecular biological techniques have made it possible to study disease pathogenesis at a genomic level. T cell receptor (TCR) gene rearrangement is an important event in T cell ontogeny that enables T cells to recognise antigens specifically, and any dysregulation in this complex yet highly regulated process may result in disease. Using techniques such as Southern blot hybridisation, polymerase chain reaction, and flow cytometry it has been possible to characterise T cell proliferations in malignancy and in diseases where T cells have been implicated in the pathogenesis. The main aim of this article is to discuss briefly the process of TCR gene rearrangement and highlight the disorders in which expansions or clonal proliferations of T cells have been recognised. It will also describe various methods that are currently used to study T cell populations in body fluids and tissue, their diagnostic role, and current limitations of the methodology.