Tenascin-C

Tenascin is a large extracellular matrix glycoprotein expressed in fibroblasts and in the extracellular matrix during embryogenesis and growth. It has a unique six-armed multidomain macromolecular structure. Repetitive sequences resembling epidermal growth factor indicate that it may bind to epidermal growth factor receptor¹².

Immunohistochemical expression

• Skin: sparsely at the dermo-epidermal junction, by the papillary dermis and around adnexa. Expression is increased in wound healing¹.

• Hyperplastic breast lesions and breast carcinoma^2,3,4

• Colonic carcinomas⁵

• Squamous cell carcinomas of the oral cavity^6,7 and skin⁸

• Lung carcinomas⁸

• Schwannomas¹⁰

• Leiomyosarcomas¹⁰

• Fibromas¹⁰

• Liposarcomas¹⁰

• Cutaneous fibrohistiocytic tumours¹¹

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Diagnostic utility

• There is increased expression at the dermo-epidermal junction overlying dermatofibromas but not dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans¹.

• Expression is more common in malignant than benign phaeochromocytomas and paragangliomas¹². The staining is of the stroma around tumour cells:

		negative (less than 5% cells staining)	weak (6 to 25% of cells staining)	moderate (26 to 50% of cells staining)	strong (more than 50% of cells staining)
phaeochromocytoma	benign	14/37	12/47	4/47	7/47
	borderline (capsular or vascular invasion, confluent tumour necrosis or >5 mitoses / 10 HPF)	6/28	9/28	11/28	2/28
	malignant (defined as metastasising or widespread local invasion)	0/3	0/3	1/3	2/3
paraganglioma	benign	1/23	11/23	6/23	5/23
	borderline (capsular or vascular invasion, confluent tumour necrosis or >5 mitoses / 10 HPF)	1/8	3/8	2/8	2/8
	malignant (defined as metastasising or widespread local invasion)	0/4	2/4	0/4	2/4
the normal adrenal medulla is negative, although focal staining may be seen around adrenocortical cells.

• Tenascin facilitates the identification and measurement of the thickened basement membrane in collagenous colitis¹³.

References

¹Kahn, H. J., Fekete, E., From, L. Tenascin differentiates dermatofibroma from dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans: comparison with CD34 and factor XIIIa. Hum Pathol 2001;32:50-56.

²Ishihara, A., Yoshida, T., Tamaki, H., Sakakura, T. Tenascin expression in cancer cells and stroma of human breast cancer and its prognostic significance. Clin Cancer Res 1995;9:1035-1041.

³Tokes, A. M., Hortovanyi, E., Csordas, G., Kulka, J., Mozes, G., Hatalyak, A., Kadar, A. Immunohistochemical localisation of tenascin in invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast. Anticancer Res 1999;19:175-179

⁴Howeedy, A. A., Virtanen, I., Laitinen, L., Gould, N. S., Koukoulis, G. K., Gould, V. E. Differential distribution of tenascin in the normal, hyperplastic, and neoplastic breast. Lab Invest 1990;63:798-806

⁵Iskaros, B. F., Tanaka, K. E., Hu, X., Kadish, A. S., Steinberg, J. J. Morphologic pattern of tenascin as a diagnostic biomarker in colon cancer. J Surg Oncol 1997;64:98-101.

⁶Mori, M., Muramatsu, Y., Yamada, K., Shrestha, P., Takai, Y. Intracellular localization of tenascin in squamous cell carcinoma of oral cavity: an immunohistochemical study. Anticancer Res 1996;16:3075-3079.

⁷Ramos, D. M., Chen, B., Regezi, J., Zardi, L., Pytela, R. Tenascin-C matrix assembly in oral squamous cell carcinoma. Int J Cancer 1998;75:680-687.

⁸Koukoulis, G. K., Gould, V. E., Bhattacharyya, A., Gould, J. E., Howeedy, A. A., Virtanen, I. Tenascin in normal, reactive, hyperplastic, and neoplastic tissues: biologic and pathologic implications. Human Pathol 1991;22:636-643

⁹Erickson, H. P., Bourdon, M. A. Tenascin: an extracellular matrix protein prominent in specialized embryonic tissues and tumors. Ann Rev Cell Biol 1989;5:71

¹⁰Schnyder, B., Semadeni, R. O., Fischer, R. W., Vaughan, L., Car, B. D., Heitz, P. U., Winterhalter, K. H., Odermatt, B. Distribution pattern of tenascin-C in normal and neoplastic mesenchymal tissues. Int J Cancer 1997;72:217-224.

¹¹Franchi, A., Santucci, M. Tenascin expression in cutaneous fibrohistiocytic tumors. Immunohistochemical investigation of 24 cases. Am J Dermatopathol 1996;18:454-459.

¹²Salmenkivi, K., Haglund, C., Arola, J., Heikkila, P. Increased expression of tenascin in pheochromocytomas correlates with malignancy. Am J Surg Pathol 2001;25:1419-23.

¹³Anagnostopoulos, I., Schuppan, D., Riecken, E. O., Gross, U. M., Stein, H. Tenascin labelling in colorectal biopsies: a useful marker in the diagnosis of collagenous colitis. Histopathology 1999;34:425-31.

This page last revised 5.11.2001.

©SMUHT/PW Bishop