Heterogeneity of neuroblastoma on the nucleic acid content in its cells (preliminary observations)

Summary. Neuroblastoma is one of the most specific of malignant solid tumors of childhood, with poorly predictable development. Conducted studies have shown that neuroblastoma is characterized by considerable diversity of the cellular composition. According to the correlation degree in the number of neuroblastoma cells ranged in content of nucleic acids in their nucleus and cytoplasm, with a high degree of reliability tumors can be divided into 3 groups: I — with a low (0.4), II — with medium (0.4–0.7) and III — with high (0.7–1) degree. The lack of correlation, between the average meaning, of nucleic acids content in the nucleus and cytoplasm of neuroblastoma cells and a wide variability in the correlation degree between these parameters in ranged on the content of nucleic acid ranks in the cancer cells’ nuclei indicates about the presence of various morphofunctional types of neuroblastoma cells. Thusly, not only individual characteristics (polyploidy, etc.), but also the degree of association between individual symptoms may also serve as criteria for evaluating the properties of neuroblastoma.