PP092: Immunohistochemical expression of glypican-1 in the differents types of ameloblastomas

Abstract

Purpose Although benigns, ameloblastomas (AM) are locally invasive and destructive tumors of the jawbone. The glypicans are a family of (GPI)-anchored proteoglycans that, by virtue of their cell-surface localization and heparin sulfate chain composition, might regulate the responses of cells to numerous heparin-binding growth factors, cell adhesion molecules, and extracellular matrix components. The expression of glypican-1 is differentially altered among different types of malignancies, suggesting a possible role in the tumorigenesis and biological behavior of these neoplasms. The aim of this study was to determine the expression of glypican-1 and then hypothesize the possible role that this protein plays in the biological behavior of ameloblastomas. Materials and methods We assessed the presence of glypican-1 by immunohistochemical staining analyses in a series of 80 cases of different types of ameloblastomas. Results All of the desmoplastic ameloblastomas exhibited the highest expression of glypican-1 (100%), followed by the peripheral (66%), solid/multicystic (51.2%) and unicystic ameloblastomas (47.2%), showing statistically significant differences within the different types of ameloblastomas (p Conclusions Significant differences were detected in glypican-1 expression among the different types of ameloblastomas, suggesting a possible association between glypican-1 expression and differential biological behavior among these neoplasms. Further studies are required to better understand the biological implications of glypican-1 expression in ameloblastomas, as well as the specific functions of glypican-1 in tumor biology.