Regional variations of cell surface carbohydrates in human oral stratified epithelium.

The distribution of blood group carbohydrate chains with antigen A, B, H type 2 chain (A and B precursor), and N-acetyllactosamine (H type 2 precursor) specificity was studied in human oral epithelium from different anatomical regions. These represented various epithelial differentiation patterns such as non-keratinized, parakeratinized, and orthokeratinized stratified squamous epithelium. The material included buccal and palatal epithelium from 20 persons with blood group A or O, gingival, and alveolar epithelium from 10 persons with blood group A or B, and buccal metaplastically keratinized epithelium from nine blood group A, two blood group B, and nine blood group O individuals. The blood group carbohydrate chains were examined in tissue sections by immunofluorescence microscopy. The A and B blood group antigens were detected by human blood group sera, and antigen H type 2 chains and N-acetyllactosamine by murine monoclonal antibodies. Each antigen showed a similar staining pattern in buccal and alveolar epithelium (non-keratinized) which differed considerably from that seen in palatal and gingival epithelium (ortho- and parakeratinized). The expression of blood group antigens A or B and the precursor antigen H type 2 chains in metaplastically keratinized buccal epithelium was found to differ significantly from that seen in normal non-keratinized buccal epithelium. The regional variations demonstrated in cell surface carbohydrates are suggested to reflect differences in tissue differentiation.