Immunophenotype of Reed-Sternberg and Hodgkin's cells in sequential biopsy specimens of Hodgkin's disease: A paraffin-section immunohistochemical study using the heat-induced epitope retrieval method
Abstract
Other studies have shown that the immunophenotype of Reed-Sternberg and Hodgkin's (RS-H) cells in Hodgkin's disease commonly changes over time, as shown by examination of multiple biopsy specimens obtained from an individual patient. In this study we analyzed 96 sequential biopsy specimens (>1 month apart) obtained from 44 patients (nodular sclerosis, 34 specimens; mixed cellularity, 5; lymphocyte depletion, 1; unclassified, 4) using fixed, paraffin-embedded sections; heat-induced epitope retrieval (HIER); a panel of antibodies specific for the CD3, CD15, CD20, CD30, CD43, CD45/45RB, and CD79a antigens and Epstein-Bart virus latent-membrane protein; and a streptavidin- biotin method. In selected cases in which immunophenotypic changes occurred, studies were repeated using enzyme predigestion instead of HIER. There was no change in the immunophenotype of the RS-H cells in 36 (82%) of 44 patients. In 8 patients (18%), the immunophenotype of the RS-H cells varied in expression of one or two antigens. The antigens that varied were as follows: CD30, 3 patients; CD15, 3 patients; CD20, 1 patient; and CD15 and CD30, 1 patient. We conclude that the immunophenotype of RS-H cells in Hodgkin's disease is relatively stable over time and that CD15 and CD30 are the most common antigens that change. The frequency of immunophenotypic changes, 18%, is substantially lower than that reported previously. One likely explanation for this discrepancy is that we used HIER, a relatively recent innovation in diagnostic immunohistochemistry that has been shown to reduce artifacts attributable to inconsistent fixation and processing. The significance of immunophenotypic variation in eight cases (18%) is uncertain. This phenomenon may represent true biologic changes in RS-H cells. Alternatively, these changes may be attributable to artifacts secondary to inconsistent fixation or processing that HIER cannot overcome.
Publication Title
American Journal of Clinical Pathology
Recommended Citation
Vasef, M., Alsabeh, R., Medeiros, L., & Weiss, L. (1997). Immunophenotype of Reed-Sternberg and Hodgkin's cells in sequential biopsy specimens of Hodgkin's disease: A paraffin-section immunohistochemical study using the heat-induced epitope retrieval method. American Journal of Clinical Pathology, 108 (1), 54-59. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcp/108.1.54
