Placental alkaline phosphatase iso-enzymes in ovarian tumours

Summary

Immunohistological examination of 100 ovarian tumours was performed using an indirect immunoperoxidase technique based on the monoclonal antibody NDOG₂, directed against placental alkaline phosphatase. Fifty-six of these tumours were malignant, of which 64 per cent (mainly serous cystadenocarcinomata) contained placental alkaline phosphatase. Only 25 per cent of 44 benign tumours had this enzyme. The degree of staining varied from tumour to tumour, even in the same histological type and, in some cases, from primary to secondary tumour in the same patient.