Expression of basement membrane laminin in oral squamous cell carcinomas

The basement membrane is a dynamic structure that undergoes quantitative and qualitative changes during the progression of squamous cell carcinoma, which is essencially important in tumoral invasion and metastasis. AIM: This study is aimed at investigating the behavior of the basement membrane in oral squamous cell carcinomas with different malignancy scores, which were obtained through the immunohistochemical expression of the laminin, a glycoprotein present in the basement membrane. STUDY DESIGN: History cross-sectional cohort. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Thirty-one cases of oral squamous cell carcinoma were subjected to histological grading of malignant tumors. The immunohistochemical expression of the laminin in lesions bearing different scores of malignancy was evaluated according to intensity and integrity, using the Streptavidin-Biotin complex method. RESULTS: We noticed significant differences in the media between intensity and continuity laminin expression in relation to different grades of malignancy. CONCLUSION: Different expressions of laminin, a glycoprotein present in basement membranes were evident in oral cell carcinomas within different grades of histological malignancy.