Comparative immunohistochemical staining for desmin and muscle-specific actin. A study of 576 cases

Our plain-English summary of Comparative immunohistochemical staining for desmin and muscle-specific actin. A study of 576 cases, by S. Rangdaeng, L.D. Truong (American Journal of Clinical Pathology, 1991).

The study

• Authors: S. Rangdaeng, L.D. Truong
• Journal: American Journal of Clinical Pathology
• Published: 1991;96(1):32-45
• Cited by: 124 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Muscle-specific actin (MSA) and desmin are considered to be sensitive and specific markers for muscle differentiation. The authors compared staining patterns for these markers in 576 samples of normal, reactive, and neoplastic tissues. The standard avidin-biotin-peroxidase complex technique was performed with the use of two commercial antibodies against MSA (HHF35; Enzo Biochemical, Inc., New York, NY) and desmin (DER11; DAKO Corporation, Santa Barbara, CA), respectively, on consecutive paraffin-embedded tissue sections from these cases. Both MSA and desmin were found in all 80 normal muscle samples. Although MSA appeared diffusely in all vascular smooth muscle samples, desmin was demonstrated focally in vascular smooth muscle cells in 100 of 196 samples. MSA but not desmin always was found in myoepithelial cells (25 samples), pericytes (286 samples), and decidual cells (7 samples). Among 76 cases of myofibroblast-containing lesions, 14 and 54 were found to have desmin and MSA, respectively. MSA and desmin were found in 4 of 4 cardiac rhabdomyomas, 34 of 34 rhabdomyosarcomas, and 5 of 6 leiomyomas. Among 22 leiomyosarcomas, 7 displayed either MSA or desmin and 7 showed both markers. In general, more tumor cells showed staining for MSA than desmin, but the reverse was true in some cases. Tissue fixed in Zenker's solution seemed to show a significant decrease in MSA immunoreactivity, but no significant change for desmin staining was observed. None of the 154 normal tissues and 22 benign nonmyogenic tumors expressed MSA or desmin. Among 133 malignant nonmyogenic tumors, positive staining for both desmin and MSA was found in 3 of 8 cases of glioblastoma multiforme, 1 of 10 malignant schwannomas, and 1 of 14 malignant fibrous histiocytomas; staining for only MSA was found in 3 of 14 malignant fibrous histiocytomas, 1 of 10 malignant schwannomas, 6 of 6 fibromatoses, 1 of 1 mammary myofibroblastoma, and 1 of 7 malignant mesotheliomas; and staining for desmin only was seen in 1 of 7 malignant mesotheliomas.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

In plain English

This was a laboratory pathology study of tissue stains. It did not study asbestos exposure. The authors, at Baylor College of Medicine and The Methodist Hospital in Houston, compared two antibody stains used to identify muscle cells, one for muscle-specific actin (MSA) and one for desmin. They applied both to 576 paraffin-embedded samples of normal, reactive and tumor tissue. All 31 rhabdomyosarcomas stained for both markers. Among 22 leiomyosarcomas, 7 stained for both, 3 for desmin only and 4 for MSA only. Sensitivity was 45% for desmin alone, 50% for MSA alone and 64% with both. Tissue fixed in Zenker's solution showed weaker MSA staining, while the type of fixative did not significantly affect desmin. A few tumors not derived from muscle also stained. Among 7 malignant mesotheliomas, one showed MSA staining, but the article describes desmin staining in these cases inconsistently. The authors concluded that for formalin-fixed leiomyosarcomas the two markers had roughly equal but rather low sensitivity. They also concluded that rare non-muscle sarcomas may stain for MSA, desmin or both.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Laboratory immunohistochemistry study comparing two antibody stains (muscle-specific actin and desmin) on stored tissue samples
• Who was studied: 576 paraffin-embedded samples of normal, reactive and tumor tissue (including normal muscle, myofibroblast-containing lesions, benign tumors, rhabdomyosarcomas, leiomyosarcomas, other sarcomas such as 7 malignant mesotheliomas, and carcinomas), studied at Baylor College of Medicine and The Methodist Hospital, Houston. Dates of sample collection are not given beyond some tumors obtained before 1982.
• Main results:
  • All 31 rhabdomyosarcomas stained for both desmin and MSA
  • Of 22 leiomyosarcomas (14 gastrointestinal, 7 soft tissue, 1 uterine), 7 stained for both markers, 3 for desmin only and 4 for MSA only. All 8 that stained for neither came from the gastrointestinal tract.
  • For leiomyosarcoma, diagnostic sensitivity was 45% with desmin alone, 50% with MSA alone, and 64% when both markers were used
  • The type of fixative did not significantly affect desmin staining, while Zenker's fixative decreased the intensity of MSA staining and the number of cells stained
  • Desmin was found focally in vascular smooth muscle in 100 of 196 samples, while MSA appeared in all of them
  • Myoepithelial cells in normal glands (25 samples) consistently stained for MSA but not desmin
  • In myofibroblast-containing lesions, desmin staining was found in many fewer cases, and in fewer cells per case, than MSA
  • Among the 7 malignant mesotheliomas, the abstract within the article reports one case staining for MSA only and one case staining for desmin only
  • According to the authors, as many as 17% of nonmyogenic sarcomas showed focal but unequivocal staining for MSA, desmin, or both
  • Neither stain labeled tumor cells in 34 carcinomas
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that for leiomyosarcomas fixed in formalin, MSA and desmin have roughly equal but rather low sensitivity
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Double staining of single sections was not done, so the authors could not tell whether glial fibrillary acidic protein and MSA were in the same tumor cells in the glioblastomas
  • The finding that desmin sometimes outperformed MSA in rhabdomyosarcoma may reflect Zenker's fixation of most rhabdomyosarcoma cases in the study

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Immunohistochemistry, Desmin, Malignant Mesothelioma.

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