Immunohistochemical localization of S-100 protein, glial fibrillary acidic protein, and neuron-specific enolase in the pars distalis of quail, rat, and human hypophyses.

In the present study, we have localized immunohistochemically S-100 protein, glial fibrillary acidic (GFA) protein, and neuron-specific enolase (NSE) by the unlabelled antibody peroxidase-antiperoxidase technique. Special attention was paid to the influence of fixation and of pretreatment of sections with proteolytic enzymes. It appeared that the final immunostaining of a given antigen largely depends on the fixative and on the species used. Moreover, pepsin pretreatment proved to be necessary to unmask S-100 protein in quail and GFA protein in rat. S-100 protein (rat, human) and GFA protein (human) immunoreactivities were detected in the folliculo-stellate (FS) cells. In quail, S-100 protein was also found in cells, which were not arranged around a follicular lumen and, in rat, the endothelial cells were immunostained for GFA protein. Clusters of granular cells were weakly immunostained for NSE in all species. An exclusive relationship between FS cells and S-100 protein could not be ascertained from this study.