lactoferrin and Carcinoma--Adenoid-Cystic

An immunoperoxidase staining technique was used for detecting three major iron-binding proteins (transferrin, ferritin and lactoferrin) in 54 adenoid cystic carcinomas (ACCs) of major and minor salivary glands. Twenty-three normal salivary glands were investigated for comparison. Transferrin staining was detected mainly in the intercalated duct and serous acinar cells, and was found inconsistently in the myoepithelial cells surrounding normal ductules. Ferritin was always absent in the normal epithelial component of salivary gland. The presence of lactoferrin was demonstrated in the serous acinar cells and intercalated duct cells of normal salivary tissues. Five histological patterns were found in ACC, and for the cellular components of each, it was possible to establish a special immunohistochemical profile. Transferrin positivity was detected in the small angular cells of 25 cases (48%), in the duct luminal cells of 19 cases (37%) and in the hyalinized stroma of 4 cases (8%). Ferritin staining was positive in the small angular cells of 23 cases (44%) and in the duct luminal cells of 15 cases (29%). Lactoferrin was detected in only duct luminal cells of 38 ACCs (73%). The comparative immunohistochemical analysis between transferrin and ferritin showed a similar distribution in this carcinoma. On the basis of the immunohistochemical data, lactoferrin might be used as a marker of glandular differentiation.

Topics: Biomarkers, Tumor; Carcinoma, Adenoid Cystic; Ferritins; Humans; Immunoenzyme Techniques; Lactoferrin; Neoplasm Proteins; Salivary Gland Neoplasms; Transferrin

The immunohistochemical expression of lysozyme (Ly), lactoferrin (La), alpha 1-antitrypsin (alpha 1-AT), and alpha 1-antichymotrypsin (alpha 1-Ach) was described, and their distributions were compared to each other in 28 cases of adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) of the salivary glands. ACC materials were obtained from the parotid gland (7), the submandibular gland (4), the sublingual gland (8), and minor oral salivary glands (9). Histopathologically, ACC was classified into cribriform (14), tubular (3), and basaloid or solid patterns (11). Positive staining for Ly was found in 1 case of solid ACC in the sublingual gland; La was found in 4 cases (2 cribriform, 1 tubular, 1 basaloid) in the sublinguals (3) and parotid glands (1); alpha 1-AT was found in 6 cases and alpha 1-Ach in 17 cases. The immunohistochemical localization of Ly and La was usually confined to luminal tumor cells of tubulo-ductal structures, irrespective of the pathologic types. Positive staining for alpha 1-AT and alpha 1-Ach appeared in tumor cells of cribriform, tubular and solid ACC. Tumor cells with positive La staining coincided with a positive reaction to alpha 1-AT and alpha 1-Ach, and tumor cells with alpha 1-AT positive deposition were also positive for alpha 1-Ach. The contents of pseudocysts in the cribriform pattern showed a positive reaction to La, alpha 1-AT, and alpha 1-Ach. Of the 28 cases of ACC, positive expressions for Ly, La, alpha 1-AT and alpha 1-Ach were found with a high frequency of alpha 1-Ach staining (17 in 28 cases were positive). In sublingual ACC (8), 7 cases were positive for immunohistochemical reactions. Co-expression or simultaneous expression for Ly, La, alpha 1-AT, and alpha 1-Ach in ACC suggest that tumor cells are protected from proteolysis or degradation.

Topics: alpha 1-Antichymotrypsin; alpha 1-Antitrypsin; Carcinoma, Adenoid Cystic; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Lactoferrin; Muramidase; Salivary Gland Neoplasms

Twelve cases of adenoid cystic carcinoma of the trachea and main-stem bronchus were histologically analyzed, and the results were examined with reference to the growth pattern of the tumor and the prognosis. The tumors were histologically classified into tubular, cribriform, and solid subtypes. Three histologic grades were established: grade I, tumors with tubular and cribriform subtypes but without solid subtype; grade II, tumors with tubular and cribriform subtypes in which the solid subtype comprised less than 20% of the area; grade III, tumors in which the solid subtype comprised more than 20% of the area. Three gross infiltrating types were established: type I, entirely intraluminal; type II, predominantly intraluminal; type III, predominantly extraluminal. In most cases histologic grade correlated with gross tumor type; that is, grades, I, II, and III were grossly types I, II, and III, respectively. The tumors infiltrating along the tracheobronchial wall were of the tubular or cribriform subtype, but not of the solid subtype. In two patients who died of distant metastasis, the histologic studies revealed the solid subtype. Immunohistochemical analysis demonstrated that the tubular subtype was the most differentiated form and the solid subtype, the most undifferentiated form. The histologic subtype of adenoid cystic carcinoma of the tracheobronchial tree was an important factor in the growth pattern of the tumor and the prognosis.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Bronchial Neoplasms; Carcinoma, Adenoid Cystic; Female; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Keratins; Lactoferrin; Male; Middle Aged; S100 Proteins; Secretory Component; Tracheal Neoplasms