Various keratin antibodies produce immunohistochemical staining of human myocardium and myometrium.

Various polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies to keratins were used to stain different human muscle tissues by paired immunofluorescence and the unlabelled antibody peroxidase-anti-peroxidase method. In the myocardium, distinct coloration of the intercalated discs was produced by two polyclonal reagents to human epidermal keratins but not by two monoclonal antibodies to cytokeratins from pig renal tubular cells. In the myometrium--mainly in the middle layer of the uterine wall--cytoplasmic coloration of a varying fraction of the smooth muscle bundles was produced, especially by one of the polyclonal and by both monoclonal reagents. The staining was often confined to the perinuclear region. The keratin-positive myometrial cells usually coexpressed vimentin and actin in various proportions. These findings indicated that intermediate filaments of the keratin type, or antigenically similar elements, are not restricted to cells of epithelial origin. Other types of muscle cells did not react with keratin antibodies, but keratin-positive macrophages were occasionally found in tongue musculature and in inflamed epicardium. Altogether, our observations emphasize that keratin reactivity cannot be considered specific for epithelial (or mesothelial) cells without reservation.