Alpha-1-antichymotrypsin in human glioblastoma multiforme cells and its relation to GFAP immunostaining

Biopsies of 20 different patients with glioblastoma multiforme were treated with 0.1% protease and stained for alpha-1-ACT. Simultaneous glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) staining of mirror sections was performed. In four cases no neoplastic cells were stained with alpha-1-ACT. The other 11 cases displayed minute accumulations of immunostained neoplastic cells in spongiotic foci. Some scattered immunostained cells not differentiable from neoplastic cells were noticed. Staining of neoplastic as well as branched intratumoral astrocytes for alpha-1-ACT and GFAP of equal distribution and intensity was detected in one case. The alpha-1-ACT immunostaining of peritumoral reactive astrocytes has been observed in 8 cases, 7 of them, however with a smaller amount of cells, entirely corresponding to the distribution and intensity of GFAP. This might represent the absorption of antigen by degenerating cells.