Chemical modification of carbohydrates in tissue sections may unmask mucin antigens

Expression of mucins in cells and tissues is of great diagnostic and prognostic importance, and immunohistochemistry frequently is used to detect them. Reports concerning mucin localization in sections sometimes are conflicting, however, partly because immunogenic regions of the mucin molecule may be masked and thus not available for binding to an antibody. We modified carbohydrates in tissue sections chemically to enhance the binding of monoclonal mucin antibodies and of the lectin, Vicia villosa B4, to human tissue. The immunohistochemical localization of MUC1 and the simple mucin-type antigens, Tn and sialyl-Tn, was influenced by oxidation with periodic acid and by β-elimination before incubation. In some epithelial cells the staining was prevented by these procedures while in other cells it was evident. It appears that chemical modification can either destroy some antigen binding sites or unmask cryptic antigen binding sites in the mucin molecule and thereby make them accessible for immunohistochemical detection.