Immunohistochemical evaluation of cell proliferation antigen Ki-67 and apoptosis-related proteins Bcl-2 and caspase-3 in oral granular cell tumor.
OBJECTIVE
We sought to evaluate the cell proliferation activity and immunohistochemical expression of proteins that promote or inhibit apoptosis in oral granular cell tumor (GCT).


METHODS
Immunohistochemistry for Ki-67, a cell proliferation marker; Bcl-2, an anti-apoptotic protein; and caspase-3, a protein implicated in the execution of apoptosis, was performed on tissues from 12 patients with GCT of the tongue.


RESULTS
Nuclear immunostaining for Ki-67 was observed only in isolated GCs (less than 2%). All patients exhibited cytoplasmic immunoreactivity for Bcl-2 in the majority of tumor cells. Cytoplasmic staining for caspase-3 was also present in more than 50% of GCs in all tumors.


CONCLUSIONS
GCT cells display low proliferation activity, a finding possibly related to their benign behavior. Caspase-3 expression suggests activation of the apoptotic cascade in the GCs, but persistence of the cells in the tissues could be attributed to the expression of Bcl-2 protein, a molecule that functions as a survival factor.
University of Athens, Department of Oral Pathology, Faculty of Dentistry, Greece.
Evanthia
E
Chrysomali
Nikolaos G
NG
Nikitakis
Konstantinos
K
Tosios
John J
JJ
Sauk
Stavros I
SI
Papanicolaou
D000328:Adult; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases / Q000032:analysis*; D002455:Cell Division; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004396:Coloring Agents; D003238:Connective Tissue / Q000473:pathology; D003593:Cytoplasm / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004792:Enzyme Precursors / Q000032:analysis*; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D016586:Granular Cell Tumor / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D015603:Keratinocytes / Q000473:pathology; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen / Q000032:analysis*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2 / Q000032:analysis*; D009418:S100 Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D014062:Tongue Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*
D004396:Coloring Agents; D004792:Enzyme Precursors; D019394:Ki-67 Antigen; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D009418:S100 Proteins; C505407:CASP3 protein, human; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases