ABSTRACT
Many antibodies have been produced against extracellular matrix components, and rapid development of immunohistochemical techniques enables us to investigate the minute distribution of a variety of extracellular matrix components in the tumor tissues. Antibody 6B6 was found to react with the intact molecules and the core molecules of small proteoglycans purified from these human nonepithelial tumors. The immunohistochemistry of the basement membrane can reveal abnormal basement membrane architecture in tumor tissues, including lack or disruption of basement membrane and abnormal deposition of the components around tumor cell nests and/or tumor cells. A most characteristic feature of salivary gland tumors is the presence of a large amount of extracellular matrix consisting of proteoglycan and other glycoproteins. Several lines of evidence have suggested that altered extracellular matrix biosynthesis by stromal cells induce the quantitative and qualitative changes in synthesis of proteoglycans in the tumor tissues.
