Lectin-binding profiles in MNNG-induced shrew esophageal carcinomas

The lectin-binding profiles of methacarn-fixed paraffin-embedded sections of N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG)-induced shrew esophageal lesions (papillomas, dysplasia, and carcinoma) were studied histochemically with biotinylated lectins and compared with those in adjacent normal esophageal epithelia. The lectins used for demonstrating sugar residues were soybean agglutinin (SBA), peanut agglutinin (PNA), Helix pomatia agglutinin (HPA), wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) and Griffonia simplicifolia-I (GS-I). Lectin-binding in normal squamous epithelium showed suprabasal (SBA, PNA and HPA) or all layer (WGA and GS-I) types. Papillomas generally showed similar lectin-binding profiles to normal epithelium, with the exception of the loss of WGA staining in basal cells. There was a significant down-regulation of SBA, PNA, HPA and WGA binding in dysplasia and carcinoma cells, while GS-I binding was preserved.