Quantitative Imaging In Vivo of Functioning Lymphatic Vessels Around Human Melanoma and Benign Nevi. (August 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Akhras, Victoria; Ramakrishnan, Rathi; Stanton, Anthony W.B.; Levick, John R.; Cook, Martin G.; Chong, Heung; Mortimer, Peter S.
• Is Part Of: Microcirculation. Volume 22:Number 6(2015:Aug.)
• Page Start: 454
• Page End: 463
• Publication Date: 2015-08
• Subjects: Biological transport -- Periodicals; Microcirculation -- Physiology -- Periodicals; 612.135
• DOI: 10.1111/micc.12216
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1073-9688

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" id="micc12216-abs-0001"> <title>Abstract</title> <sec id="micc12216-sec-0001" sec-type="section"> <title>Objectives</title> <p>The density of functioning human lymphatics <italic>in vivo</italic> and of immunohistochemically defined lymphatics was quantified around melanomas, benign nevi, and matched normal skin, to assess the current lymphangiogenesis paradigm. We investigated whether histological and functioning density increased around melanomas compared with benign nevi or matched skin; whether functioning and histological density increased similarly; and whether larger increases occurred around metastatic melanomas.</p> </sec> <sec id="micc12216-sec-0002" sec-type="section"> <title>Methods</title> <p>Functioning density was quantified <italic>in vivo</italic> as the total amount of human dermal microlymphatics taking up fluorescent marker injected at the lesion margin. After tissue excision, perilesion histological density was quantified using podoplanin marker D2‐40.</p> </sec> <sec id="micc12216-sec-0003" sec-type="section"> <title>Results</title> <p>Histological density was raised similarly around metastasising and non‐metastasising melanomas compared with normal skin (+71%, <italic>p </italic><<italic> </italic>0.0001, <italic>n </italic>=<italic> </italic>32); but was also raised significantly around benign nevi (+17%, <italic>p </italic>=<italic> </italic>0.03, <italic>n </italic>=<italic> </italic>20). In contrast, functioning lymphatic density was substantially <italic>reduced</italic> around the margins of melanomas (both metastasising and non‐metastasising) compared with benign nevi (by 65%, <italic>p </italic>=<italic> </italic>0.02) or normal skin (by 53%, <italic>p </italic>=<italic> </italic>0.0014).</p> </sec> <sec id="micc12216-sec-0004" sec-type="section"> <title>Conclusions</title> <p>Raised perilesion histological lymphatic density is not unique to melanoma but occurs also around benign nevi. The findings indicated that the number of functioning lateral lymphatics around human melanomas <italic>in vivo</italic> but not benign nevi is reduced, despite histologically increased numbers of lymphatics.</p> </sec> </abstract>