SIMULTANEOUS DETECTION OF INTERCELLULAR-ADHESION MOLECULE-1 (CD54) AND CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN IN LUNG ADENOCARCINOMA

Simultaneous detection of intercellular adhesion molecules-1 (ICAM-1) and carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) was investigated in AMeX (Acetone, Methyl benzoate and Xylene)-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumor sections of 24 adenocarcinomas of the lung, using the avidin-biotin-peroxidase co mplex (ABC) method. Distinct expression of both ICAM-1 and CEA was fou nd in tumor cells in all cases. The staining pattern of these two anti gens was quite similar and was mainly affected by the tumor grade. In well-differentiated adenocarcinoma, uniformly positive staining was de monstrated predominantly along the apical surfaces of the tumor cell n ests, and to a lesser degree on the lateral cell surface and in the cy toplasm with apical concentration, but no positive staining was found on the basal cell surfaces. In poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, p ositive staining was found along the entire cell surface and in the ce ll cytoplasm without any apical concentration, and the staining intens ity varied from region to region in the same tumor cell and from cell to cell within the same tumor cell nest. In moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma, the staining pattern was intermediate between those of well and poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma with some degree of api cal concentration. The expression pattern of ICAM-1 or CEA on tumor ce lls did not correlate well indicate that the expression pattern of CEA and ICAM-1 is an inherent characteristic of tumor cells, and that the ir abnormal expression may play an important role in the physiological behavior of tumor cells because the polarity of their expression is l ost in parallel with histological tumor grades.