Immunohistochemical localisation of tissue plasminogen activator and urokinase in the vessel wall.

Immunoreactive plasminogen activators were studied in tissue sections using a peroxidase method and monospecific antibodies to tissue plasminogen activator produced by a melanoma. Tissue plasminogen activator reactivity was found in skin melanomas and in endothelial and smooth muscle cells of arteries and veins. Vessels of the umbilical cord showed higher reactivity than peripheral vessels. Only faint antiurokinase reactivity was found. By means of the fibrin slide technique, fibrinolytic activity could be shown in peripheral vessel walls but not in the umbilical cord, which suggests that immunoreactivity of tissue plasminogen activator bound to an inhibitor can also be demonstrated. This method may be a useful tool in further studies of tissue plasminogen activator in physiological as well as pathological processes.