Department of Dermatology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, USA.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 2013 Jan;68(1):129-37. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2012.07.009. Epub 2012 Sep 3.
Spitzoid malignant melanoma (SMM) shares many histopathologic features with Spitz nevus (SN). The distinction between SMM and SN remains one of the most difficult diagnostic problems in dermatopathology. Neuropilin-2 (NRP2) is a cytoplasmic/cell surface protein that is a mediator of melanoma-endothelial cell interaction.
The aim of this study was to evaluate NRP2 expression in SMM and SN and to determine whether it can reliably differentiate between the 2 groups.
We studied the expression of NRP2 in 19 cases of SMM and 19 cases of SN from Yale Spitzoid Neoplasm Repository, New Haven, Conn.
All 19 cases of SMM (100%) expressed NRP2. Most SMM showed moderate- and high-intensity staining in the majority of the melanoma cells. Most of the SN (14/19, 74%) were negative for the marker. NRP2 labeled only 5 of 19 SN (26%) and all of them demonstrated mild staining intensity. NRP2(+) staining was statistically significant in differentiating SMM from SN (P < .05).
Small study size is a limitation.
NRP2 expression in SMM and SN may be a useful adjunct marker, in addition to histopathologic evaluation, in the differentiation between these 2 entities.
Spitz 样恶性黑色素瘤 (SMM) 在组织病理学特征上与 Spitz 痣 (SN) 有很多相似之处。因此，SMM 和 SN 的区分仍然是皮肤科病理学中最具挑战性的诊断问题之一。神经纤毛蛋白-2（NRP2）是一种细胞质/细胞膜蛋白，是黑色素瘤-内皮细胞相互作用的介质。
本研究旨在评估 NRP2 在 SMM 和 SN 中的表达情况，并确定其是否能可靠地区分这两组。
我们研究了来自耶鲁 Spitz 样肿瘤库（康涅狄格州纽黑文）的 19 例 SMM 和 19 例 SN 中 NRP2 的表达情况。
所有 19 例 SMM（100%）均表达 NRP2。大多数 SMM 的大多数黑色素瘤细胞呈中-高强度染色。大多数 SN（14/19，74%）为标记物阴性。NRP2 标记了 19 例 SN 中的 5 例（26%），且所有 SN 的染色强度均为轻度。NRP2（+）染色在区分 SMM 和 SN 方面具有统计学意义（P <.05）。
研究规模小是一个局限性。
NRP2 在 SMM 和 SN 中的表达可能是一种有用的辅助标志物，除了组织病理学评估外，还可以帮助区分这两种实体。
