Abnormal expression of G71 antibody at the epidermal basement membrane in basal cell carcinoma

The antibody G71 is a murine monoclonal antibody directed against an antigen in the basement membrane zone of many human epithelia. Ultrastructurally it is located in the lamina lucida. The epitope is carried on glycoprotein components with molecular weights of 160, 125, and 115 kilodaltons. The authors examined the immunohistochemical expression of G71 antigen, using a standard indirect immunoperoxidase technique, in benign and malignant tumors derived from the epidermis. G71 staining was consistently absent or reduced around basal cell carcinomas (n = 44). In contrast, G71 was present at the basement membrane zone of squamous cell carcinomas (n = 18) and was also frequently expressed within the cytoplasm and on the cell surface of the malignant keratinocytes. The staining pattern of G71 at the basement membrane zone was essentially normal in keratoacanthomas (n = 10), solar keratoses (n = 13), seborrheic keratoses (n = 6), and intraepidermal squamous cell carcinomas (n = 8), apart from foci of attenuation. In both seborrheic keratoses and intraepidermal squamous cell carcinomas cell-surface and cytoplasmic staining were inconstant features. In conclusion, there appears to be a specific defect of G71 antigen expression in basal cell carcinomas.