The location of Ted-R-1 antigen on the cell membrane of the stratum corneum: immunoelectron microscopic study.

As the Ted-R-1 monoclonal antibody yields fluorescence on the keratohyalin granules, in the cytoplasm of the lower stratum corneum cells and on the cell membrane region of the stratum corneum in indirect immunofluorescent examination, the location of the antigen of this Ted-R-1 monoclonal antibody was examined by the post-embedding, immunoelectron microscopic technique using gold labelled antibody. The number of gold particles located on the keratohyalin granules was 184.00 +/- 28.69 per micron2. In contrast, there were only a few gold particles in the nucleus and the cytoplasm of the stratum granulosum (3.85 +/- 1.34) and none were found in the intercellular spaces of these cells (< 1.00). On the other hand, they were diffusely located in the lower two to three cell layers of the stratum corneum (319.75 +/- 44.41) and on the inner surface of the marginal band of the upper cell layers of the stratum corneum, but only a few were located in the cytoplasm of the upper stratum corneum cells (12 +/- 7.00). These observations indicate that the Ted-R-1 antigen locates on both keratohyalin granules and the inner surface of the marginal band of the upper part of the stratum corneum cell layers.