Ultrastructure Studies of Oral Mucosa. I. Comparison of Normal and Hyperkeratotic Human Buccal Epithelium

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Abstract
Leukoplakia and adjacent clinically normal appearing buccal mucosa were studied in 10 human subjects to gain an insight into keratinization through fine structure. The leukoplakia specimens differed from the normal by demonstrating: an interrupted and multiple basement lamina; an increased number of cell organelles; striated granules in the high prickle layer; marked banding of the fibrils, which are assumed to be precursors or modified forms of keratin; keratohyalin granules; and a stratum corneum in which the cells are filled with an electron dense fibrillar material (assumed to be keratin) and are separated by an irregular bulbous intercellular space which appears to be filled with a mucinous material. A general difference between normal and leukoplakic oral epithelium can be described on a basis of histo-morphology. The functional interpretation of these fine structure differences is not known. Further studies are necessary to relate the roles of various organelles to the synthesis of keratin under normal and pathologic conditions.

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