Identification of intermediate filament keratin proteins in parakeratinized odontogenic keratocysts. A preliminary study.

The keratin proteins were extracted from the epithelial lining of three odontogenic keratocyst specimens. Two of the specimens were from a patient with nevoid basal cell carcinoma syndrome; the third was a solitary lesion. Seven keratin proteins with molecular weights of 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 58, and 59 kilodaltons were identified by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and immunoblotting with antikeratin antiserum. The reproducibility of the pattern of molecular markers implies a series of genetic events coincident with the characteristic pattern of epithelial differentiation.