1999 Volume 62 Issue 2 Pages 105-110
We biochemically investigated the expression of cytokeratin in the vitamin A-deficient rat submandibular gland. The vitamin A deficiency suppressed increases in body weight from six weeks after breeding. Although the wet and dry weights of the submandibular gland, total protein per tissue dry weight, and retinol-binding protein in serum tended to decrease, DNA content per gland tissue dry weight tended to increase compared with normal rats. The expression of cytokeratins 5, 7, 10, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18 and 19 was observed with immunoblotting and two-dimensional electrophoresis profiles in extracts from both groups. The expression of cytokeratins 14, 15 and 19 was especially pronounced in the vitamin A-deficient rats compared with normal animals. These results indicate that vitamin A deficiency induces stratification in rat submandibular gland cells.
