Analysis Of Mast Cell Counts In Oral Leukoplakia

Mast cells are regarded as one of the important cells of the immune system. They are generally believed to have different roles in human health and disease. Present study aimed to evaluate the total mast cell count, the distribution of degranulated mast cells and the possible role played by them in Oral Leukoplakia (OLK). Total mast cell count and the count of degranulated mast cells were analyzed separately in 40 histopathologically confirmed cases of OLK after staining the sections with 1% Toluidine blue. These values were compared with sections taken from clinically healthy papillary gingival in 10 normal subjects. The count of degranulated mast cells was also separately evaluated in the three zones viz. Sub-epithelial, Intermediate and Deeper zones of the connective tissue in all the OLK cases. There was significant increase in the total mast cell count and the count of degranulated mast cells in Oral Leukoplakia as compared to normal oral mucosa (p < 0.001). The count of degranulated cells was found to be the highest in the Deep zone in all the OLK cases studied. The resent study revealed that the total count of mast cells and the count of degranulated mast cells were significantly increased in oral leukoplakia. This may be attributed to their pro-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic role in oral leukoplakia and may actually play a significant role in its progression to invasive carcinoma.