Mast cell heterogeneity in the human uvea |
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Authors: | C Albrecht May |
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Institution: | Anatomisches Institut II, Universit?t Erlangen-Nürnberg, Universit?tsstrasse 19, D-91054 Erlangen, Germany e-mail: atmay@anatomie.uni-erlangen.de Fax: +49-9131-8522862, DE
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Abstract: | To identify chymase- and tryptase-positive mast cells in the human uvea, and to study their associations with different types
of resident uveal cells, uveal specimens from 24 human donor eyes were cryosectioned in sagittal and tangential planes. Enzyme
histochemical staining of chymase was combined with immunohistochemical staining for tryptase, detected with the APAAP method.
Fluorescence immunohistochemistry was performed with antibodies against c-kit, alpha smooth muscle actin, protein gene product
(PGP) 9.5, CD45, and HLA-DR. In different uveal compartments, the total amounts of mast cells were calculated and the distributions
of chymase and tryptase were quantified. All uveal mast cells were c-kit and CD45 positive and HLA-DR negative. No association
existed between mast cells and actin-containing cells. Only a few mast cells were in close association with PGP 9.5-labeled
nerve fibers. In the choroid, most mast cells were located in the inner central part (mean density = 48.9/mm2), and contained both chymase and tryptase (96%). The ciliary muscle contained numerous mast cells (mean density = 33.7/mm2), many of them tryptase positive but chymase negative (63%). In the pars plana, a high number of chymase-positive, tryptase-negative
mast cells were found (20%). In the iris only a few mast cells were present. Although the choroid contains the most common
subtype of mast cells, a unique situation concerning the distribution of chymase and tryptase is present in the anterior uveal
tissues. A possible role for these cells in the special immunological situation of the anterior eye chamber merits further
investigation.
Accepted: 16 September 1999 |
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