Ultastructural and immunohistochemical observations on amorphous matrices related to basal lamina in breast cancer: Preliminary data

Abstract

Amorphous matrices related with basement membrane have been described before, in peri-vascular locations in malignancies, reactive lesions and normal cerebral cortex and on the surfaces of benign tumoral fibroblasts. They appear to be compartments comprising the proteins normally found in an organised (laminate) lamina (lamina densa/lamina lucida), but not in fact organised in that manner, and have a disorganized a amorphous appearance.

By light microscopy immunohistochemistry, BM of vessels and epithelial cells stained positively for laminin and collagen IV, two of the main proteins characterizing a conventional basal lamina.

This paper discusses the possibility that ultrastructural findings in correlation with those of immunohistochemistry supply more information for the biological behavior of breast cancer that seems to be influenced by the pattern of organization of BM proteins. These models of organization may be involved in the metastatic process.