title: Immunohistochemical study of CD44 immunopositive cells in the muscular layers of the gastrointestinal tract in adult guinea pigs and mice.
abstract: This study investigates whether CD44 immunopositive cells truly correspond to the interstitial cells of Cajal (ICCs) in the muscular layers of the gastrointestinal tract in guinea pigs and Balb/c mice using immunohistochemistry with antibodies directed against CD44, Kit, vimentin and neurofilament 200 (NF200). All the sub-groups of ICCs were immunopositive for the anti-Kit antibody in the muscular layers of stomach, small intestine and colon in both cross sections and whole-mount preparations. Kit/CD44/vimentin triple immunolabeling showed that all the ICCs in different segments and muscular layers of the digestive tract were CD44, Kit and vimentin immunopositive. Kit/CD44/NF200 triple immunolabeling revealed that neither enteric nerves nor other major cells were CD44 immunopositive in the muscular layers, apart from the ICCs. CD44 and Kit were co-localized in the same group of cells, apart from a very small number (0.6%) of CD44 immunopositive cells that were not Kit immunopositive. Our results indicate that these CD44 immunopositive cells truly correspond to ICCs, thus immunolocalisation of CD44 can be used as a special marker, in addition to Kit, to identify ICCs in the digestive tract in adult guinea pigs and mice.
authors.affiliation: Department of Histology and Embryology, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China.
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Yang-tao
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Sheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Shi-feng
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mei
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003106:Colon / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D018960:Hyaluronan Receptors / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007421:Intestine, Small / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D016900:Neurofilament Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D019009:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit / Q000378:metabolism; D013270:Stomach / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D013552:Swine; D014746:Vimentin / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D018960:Hyaluronan Receptors; D016900:Neurofilament Proteins; D014746:Vimentin; C051774:neurofilament protein H; D019009:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit