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Immunohistochemical expression of BCL‐2 in melanomas and intradermal nevi
Author(s) -
Carmen SaenzSantamaría M.,
Reed Jon A.,
Scott McNutt N.,
Shea Christopher R.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
journal of cutaneous pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.597
H-Index - 75
eISSN - 1600-0560
pISSN - 0303-6987
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0560.1994.tb00278.x
Subject(s) - melanoma , immunohistochemistry , pathology , clone (java method) , antigen , nevus , carcinogenesis , hmb 45 , antibody , malignant transformation , biology , melanocytic nevus , superficial spreading melanoma , cancer research , medicine , cancer , immunology , gene , biochemistry , genetics
The BCL‐2 gene is the prototype of a newly described family of oncogenes involved in tumorigenesis by blocking apoptosis, or programmed cell death. Overexpression of BCL‐2 protein was originally described in follicular B‐cell lymphomas bearing the 14;18 translocation. BCL‐2 overexpression has also been described in other lymphomas and more rarely in neoplasms outside the lymphoid tissue. The aim of this paper is to determine the immunohistochemical expression of BCL‐2 in intradermal nevi and primary invasive and metastatic melanoma. Formalin‐fixed and paraffin‐embedded tissues from 4 cutaneous melanoma metastases, 10 primary invasive melanomas, and 10 intradermal melanocytic nevi were immimolabeled with monoclonal antibodies directed against BCL‐2 protein (Dako, clone 124) and Ki‐67 antigen (Amac, clone MIB‐1), after antigen retrieval techniques. Morphologically normal epidermal melanocytes expressed BCL‐2, as did nevi and melanomas in virtually all cells. However, whereas the labeling in normal melanocytes and nevus cells showed a uniformly strong reactivity, melanoma cells showed a variable but mainly weak reactivity. Ki‐67 antigen expression was restricted to melanomas. The widespread expression of BCL‐2 suggests that this onco‐protein cannot be involved in the malignant transformation of melanocytic cells. It seems likely that the decreased BCL‐2 expression detected in melanomas may reflect one further step of tumor progression in melanocytic neoplasms.