Summary
The distribution of the 52 kDa keratin 13 was evaluated immunohistochemically, using the AE8 monoclonal antibody. Various squamous and transitional cell epithelial lesions and representative control tissues were studied. This antibody performed adequately in formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded tissue, but like keratin immunohistochemistry in general, required protease pretreatment. Keratin 13 was found consistently in the suprabasal layers of squamous epithelia of oral cavity, tonsils, larynx, esophagus, lower female genital tract, and transitional urothelium, but it was absent in the epidermis. Generally, various forms of squamous metaplasia were AE8-positive. In dysplasia, AE8 reactivity was considerably decreased or even absent despite the presence of apparent suprabasal maturation. In differentiated squamous cell carcinomas, AE8 immunoreactivity was usually limited to a few cells in the center of the keratinized foci. However, in 10% of squamous cell carcinomas, a significant number of tumor cells was positive. Only well-differentiated urothelial carcinomas showed AE8 immunoreactivity, while poorly differentiated tumors were negative. Interestingly, a Brenner's tumor showed a high number of AE8-positive epithelial cells. Our results show that the expression of keratin 13, as immunohistochemically determined by AE8 antibody, is significantly down-regulated in squamous cell malignancies. Its possible value as an adjunct to diagnosis of dysplasia should be investigated further.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Achtstätter T, Moll R, Moore B, Franke WW (1985) Cytokeratin polypeptide patterns of different epithelia of the human male urogenital tract: immunofluorescence and gel electrophoretic studies. J Histochem Cytochem 33:415–426
Battifora H, Sun TT, Bahu RM, Rao S (1980) The use of antikeratin antiserum as a diagnostic tool: thymoma versus lymphoma. Hum Pathol 11:635–641
Battifora H, Kopinski M (1986) The influence of protease digestion and duration of fixation on the immunostaining of keratinocytes. A comparison of formalin and ethanol fixation. J Histochem Cytochem 34:1095–1097
Cooper D, Schermer A, Sun TT (1985) Classification of human epithelia and their neoplasms using monoclonal antibodies to keratins: strategies, applications, and limitations. Lab Invest 52:243–256
Franke WW, Schiller DL, Moll R, Winter S, Schmid E, Engelbrecht I, Denk H, Krepler R, Platzer B (1981) Diversity of cytokeratins. Differentiation specific expression of cytokeratin polypeptides in epithelial cells and tissues. J Mol Biol 153:933–959
Franke WW, Schmid E, Wellsteed J, Grund C, Gigi O, Geiger B (1983) Change of cytokeratin filament organization during the cell cycle: selective masking of an immunologic determinant in interphase PtK2 cells. J Cell Biol 97:1255–1260
Huang TH, St. George JA, Plopper CG, Wu R (1989) Keratin protein expression during the development of conducting airway epithelium in nonhuman primates. Differentiation 41:78–86
Huszar M, Gigi-Leitner O, Moll R, Franke WW, Geiger B (1986) Monoclonal antibodies to various acidic (type I) cytokeratins of stratified epithelia. Selective markers for stratification and squamous cell carcinomas. Differentiation 31:141–153
Jetten AM, George MA, Smits HL, Vollberg TM (1989) Keratin 13 expression is linked to squamous differentiation in rabbit tracheal epithelial cells and down-regulated by retinoic acid. Exp Cell Res 182:622–634
Lifschitz-Mercer B, Czernobilsky B, Shezen E, Dgani R, Leitner O, Geiger B (1988) Selective expression of cytokeratin polypeptides in various epithelia of human Brenner tumor. Hum Pathol 19:640–650
Miettinen M (1989) Immunostaining of intermediate filament proteins in paraffin sections. Evaluation of optimal protease treatment to improve the immunoreactivity. Pathol Res Pract 184:431–436
Moll R, Franke WW, Schiller DL, Geiger B, Krepler R (1982) The catalog of human cytokeratins: pattern of expression in normal epithelia, tumors and cultured cells. Cell 31:11–24
Moll R, Krepler R, Franke WW (1983) Complex cytokeratin polypeptide patterns observed in certain human carcinomas. Differentiation 23:256–269
Moll R, Achtstätter T, Becht E, Balcarova-Ständer J, Ittensohn M, Franke WW (1988) Cytokeratins in normal and malignant transitional epithelium. Maintenanceof expression of urothelial differentiation features in transitional cell carcinomas and bladder carcinoma cell culture lines. Am J Pathol 132:123–144
Muijen GN van, Ruiter DJ, Franke WW, Achtstätter T, Haasnoot WH, Ponec M, Warnaar SO (1986) Cell type heterogeneity of cytokeratin expression in complex epithelia and carcinomas as demonstrated by monoclonal antibodies specific for cytokeratins nos. 4 and 13. Exp Cell Res 162:97–113
Nagle RB, Moll R, Weidauer H, Nemetschek H, Franke WW (1985) Different patterns of cytokeratin expression in the normal epithelia of the upper respiratory tract. Differentiation 30:130–140
O'Guin WM, Galvin S, Schermer A, Sun TT (1987) Patterns of keratin expression define distinct pathways of epithelial development and differentiation. Curr Top Dev Biol 22:97–125
Osborn M, Weber K (1983) Tumor diagnosis by intermediate filament typing: a novel tool for surgical pathology. Lab Invest 48:372–394
Osborn M, Lessen G van, Weber K, Kloppel G, Altmannsberger M (1986) Differential diagnosis of gastrointestinal carcinomas by using monoclonal antibodies specific for individual keratin polypeptides. Lab Invest 55:497–504
Ouhayoun JP, Gosselin F, Forest N, Winter S, Franke WW (1985) Cytokeratin pattern of human oral epithelia: differences in cytokeratin synthesis in gingival epithelium and the adjacent alveolar mucosa. Differentiation 30:123–129
Ramaekers F, Huysmans A, Moesker O, Kant A, Jap P, Herman C, Vooijs P (1983) Monoclonal antibody to keratin filaments, specific for glandular epithelia and their tumors. Lab Invest 49:353–361
Resta L, Santangelo A, Caruso G, Buonomo C (1985) Local morphologic changes related to laryngeal carcinoma. Tumori 71:19–24
Sun TT (1989) Pathways of keratinocyte differentiation. In: Osborn M, Weber K (eds) Cytoskeletal proteins in tumor diagnosis. Current communications in molecular biology. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, pp 121–126
Sun TT, Eichner R, Nelson WG, Tseng SC, Weiss RA, Jarvinen M, Woodcock-Mitchell J (1983) Keratin classes: molecular markers for different types of epithelial differentiation. J Invest Dermatol 81:109s-115s
Sun TT, Tseng SC, Huang AJ, Cooper D, Schermer A, Lynch MH, Weiss R, Eichner R (1985) Monoclonal antibody studies of mammalian epithelia keratins: a review. Ann Acad Sci 455:307–329
Tseng SCG, Hatchell D, Tierney N, Huang SJW, Sun TT (1984) Expression of specific keratin markers by rabbit corneal, conjunctival and esophageal epithelia during vitamin A deficiency. J Cell Biol 99:2279–2283
Weidauer H, Nagle RB, Moll R, Franke WW (1986) Cytokeratin expression in normal and malignant tongue epithelium. Laryngol Rhinol Otol (Stuttg) 65:164–168
Woodcock-Mithell J, Eichner R, Nelson WG, Sun TT (1982) Immunolocalization of keratin polypeptides in human epidermis using monoclonal antibodies. J Cell Biol 95:580–588
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Malecha, M.J., Miettinen, M. Expression of keratin 13 in human epithelial neoplasms. Vichows Archiv A Pathol Anat 418, 249–254 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01606063
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01606063