Immunological characteristics and histological distribution of human hair fibrous proteins studied with anti-hair keratin monoclonal antibodies HKN-2, HKN-4, and HKN-6.

Abstract

By use of a mouse hybridoma technique, monoclonal antibodies were produced against hair fibrous proteins, which were extracted from normal human hairs. Three monoclonal antibodies, designated as HKN-2, HKN-4, and HKN-6, were chosen and used to investigate the immunological characteristics of hair fibrous proteins. Epidermal fibrous proteins were also extracted from human sole callus horny materials. Hair or epidermal fibrous proteins were electrophoretically separated on polyacrylamide gels with sodium dodecyl sulfate. By immunoblot analyses, HKN-2 and HKN-4 marked the electrophoretic bands of both proteins; however, HKN-6 reacted only with the bands of hair fibrous proteins. Immunohistochemically, all three monoclonal antibodies stained the keratogenous zone of anagen hairs. HKN-6 did not react with any other skin components or with tissues of other organs examined. Although HKN-2 showed reactions with skin epithelial tissues, except for epidermal basal cells and secretory cells of sweat glands, the reactivity of HKN-2 was limited within the skin. HKN-4 displayed a broad crossreactivity with all of the skin epithelial cells and various epithelial cells of other organs. These findings indicate that some components of hair fibrous proteins are immunologically specific to hair cells, whereas others broadly crossreacted with the fibrous proteins of other skin epithelial cells or with those of various epithelial cells. The anti-hair keratin monoclonal antibodies seem useful to examine the differentiation patterns of epithelial cells and tissues.

Patterns of expression of trichocytic and epithelial cytokeratins in mammalian tissues II. Concomitant and mutually exclusive synthesis of trichocytic and epithelial cytokeratins in diverse human and bovine tissues (hair follicle, nail bed and matrix, lingual papilla, thymic reticulum)

“…Previously described antibodies raised against hard keratins of hair and/or nail did either cross-react between representatives of both groups of cytokeratins [4,23,30,34,35,42,69] or, when apparently specific for trichocytic cytokeratins (e.g. Previously described antibodies raised against hard keratins of hair and/or nail did either cross-react between representatives of both groups of cytokeratins [4,23,30,34,35,42,69] or, when apparently specific for trichocytic cytokeratins (e.g.…”

“…In fetal development, the clusters of hair follicle and nail germ cells appear to emerge from a subset of early epidermal keratinocytes (for reviews see [S, 51, 71, 72]), and this differentiation of cell shape and character seems to be accompanied by a change from early epidermal cytokeratins [5,12,24,39,491 to the trichocyte-specific cytokeratins. Biochemical analyses of cytoskeletal proteins of trichocytes of hair follicles or of mature hair structures, and also immunocytochemistry using antibodies raised against hair-type (trichocytic) cytokeratins [4,23,30,31,34,35,421, have suggested that synthesis of trichocytic cytokeratins and synthesis of epithelial cytokeratins are mutually exclusive, although they have not proved it. Biochemical analyses of cytoskeletal proteins of trichocytes of hair follicles or of mature hair structures, and also immunocytochemistry using antibodies raised against hair-type (trichocytic) cytokeratins [4,23,30,31,34,35,421, have suggested that synthesis of trichocytic cytokeratins and synthesis of epithelial cytokeratins are mutually exclusive, although they have not proved it.…”

Patterns of expression of trichocytic and epithelial cytokeratins in mammalian tissues. I. Human and bovine hair follicles

“…Immunological studies have indicated the occurrence of common epitopes in epithelial and trichocytic cytokeratins (e.g. [5,26,34,38,39,47,741). Moreover, amino acid sequence comparisons between representatives of either subfamily of sheep wool trichocytic a-keratins and the epithelial cytokeratins have revealed that they are homologous in the a-helical rod domain, but differ considerably in the head and tail domains, including more cysteine and proline residues [12, 15, 59, 72, 731. Probably due to the homologies and similarities between the epithelial and trichocytic cytokeratins and the wellknown cellular complexity of the hair follicle, as revealed by light and electron microscopy (for reviews, see, e.g.…”

“…[37-39, 57, 64]), the available immunocytochemical data are difficult to interpret. Recently some monoclonal antibodies to " hair fibrous proteins ", i.e., presumably trichocytic cytokeratins, have been described [38,391. Some of these react not only with the hair follicle cortex and medulla but also with the cuticle, whereas others react with these hair-forming cells as well as with certain cells of the inner and outer root sheath.…”

Sebaceous Epithelioma

“…Tumor cells of the present case were positively stained with HKN-2, HKN-4, HKN-5 (8,9) and BKN (10, 11). These staining patterns resemble those ofBCE.…”