IMMUNOCYTOCHEMICAL DETECTION OF AUTOANTIBODY DEPOSITS IN TZANCK SMEARS FROM PATIENTS WITH ORAL PEMPHIGUS

Eighteen patients, ten affected by pemphigus vulgaris and four affecte d by herpes simplex of the oral mucosa, together with four healthy pat ients as controls, were investigated by cytologic examination of Papan icolaou stained smears obtained by scraping the oral mucosa. In all ca ses additional smears were immunostained with the alkaline phosphatase -anti-alkaline phosphatase (APAAP) technique using monoclonal antibodi es against human heavy IgG chains and lambda light chains, The results have shown that, for a cytological diagnosis of pemphigus, this techn ique can be used as an easy substitute for the immunofluorescence test and does not require any specialized training or equipment. The findi ngs are clearly detectable by light microscopy and allow, together wit h the immunostaining, an adequate visualization of cell morphology.