LEPTOMENINGEAL DISSEMINATION OF MALIGNANT GLIOMA - IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF TENASCIN AND GLIAL FIBRILLARY ACIDIC PROTEIN

Immunohistochemical expression of tenascin (TN) and glial fibrillary a cidic protein (GFAP) was investigated in 9 human malignant gliomas wit h leptomeningeal dissemination. In these patients intracerebral glioma tissues obtained at operation and/or autopsy displayed localized expr ession of TN in tumor vessels and stroma. In contrast, TN was expresse d in the tumor vessels, tumor stroma, and the cytoplasm of tumor cells to a high degree throughout all the leptomeningeal tumor tissues obta ined at autopsy, whereas there was much less expression of GFAP in the se tissues than at the primary site. These findings suggest that TN ex pression and decrease of GFAP expression in glioma tissue may be invol ved in the development of leptomeningeal dissemination.