Nuclear translocation of β-catenin synchronized with loss of E-cadherin in oral epithelial dysplasia with a characteristic two-phase appearance.

Aims: One of the important histopathological characteristics of oral epithelial dysplasia is a two-phase appearance of rete processes, comprising an upper layer of keratinized cells and a lower layer of basaloid cells, and thereby creating a sharp contrast between these two separate cell populations. The aim of this study was to determine the cellular adhesion status of the basaloid cells.

Methods And Results: Immunohistochemistry for β-catenin, E-cadherin and their related molecules was carried out in surgical specimens of two-phase epithelial dysplasia of the oral mucosa.