LANGERHANS CELL-DENSITY IN NORMAL HUMAN ORAL-MUCOSA AND SKIN - RELATIONSHIP TO AGE, SMOKING AND ALCOHOL-CONSUMPTION

The immune function of skin has been studied extensively and it has be en suggested that epidermal Langerhans cell (LC) density and function decreases with increasing age. Little is known, however, about the eff ect of age on oral mucosal LC. Cryostat sections from biopsies of bucc al mucosa, lip, hard palate, lateral border of tongue, floor of mouth and abdominal skin, obtained from 91 subjects (aged 16-96 yr), were re acted immunocytochemically with a monoclonal antibody against CD1a and then LC density was expressed as LC/mm epithelial surface length. No significant effect of age on mucosal or skin LC density was found, whi lst a history of smoking was associated with an increase in LC density in lateral border of tongue and in biopsies of labial mucosa taken fr om men (P<0.05). There was no significant difference between LC densit y in men and women in oral mucosa. Oral mucosal LC may therefore form a relatively stable population in the adult and thus the increased inc idence of mucosal disease in the elderly may be the result of subtle c hanges in cell mediated immune function rather than changes in LC dens ity.