Histochemical demonstration of colonic type mucin in glandular metaplasia and adenocarcinoma of the human urinary bladder.

Mucin in normal, metaplastic and neoplastic tissue specimens of the human urinary bladder was examined histochemically by the periodic acid-borohydride/potassium hydroxide/periodic acid-Schiff (PB/KOH/PAS) reaction and paradoxical concanavalin A (Con A) staining, both of which have been reported to detect mucins that are specific for the lower gastrointestinal tract. Normal mucosa, Brunn's nest, squamous metaplasia, transitional cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma produced only small amount of mucin and were negative for both PB/KOH/PAS and labile class III by Con A staining. However, several sections of mucin-producing metaplastic bladder lesions and many samples of adenocarcinoma arising from vesical mucosa and urachus contained PB/KOH/PAS-positive and/or labile class III mucin. Thus the colonic type mucin appeared in some materials of both benign and malignant mucin-producing lesions of the urinary bladder. The findings would be related to the embryogenesis of this organ.