The myoepithelium of human major salivary glands revisited.

The presence of myoepithelial cells in salivary glands is of importance with regard to tumour histogenesis, yet there is no consensus in the literature as to the specific location of these cells. A major problem has been the methods of precise identification of myoepithelium at the light microscopic level. The present study therefore reviews the distribution of myoepithelial cells in the major salivary glands (parotid, submandibular and sublingual) of the human, utilising a monoclonal antibody specific to actin, a cytoplasmic component of the myoepithelial cell. Qualitative analysis was performed to assess the distribution of these cells in mucous and serous acini and in the different regions of the ductal system. As previously described, myoepithelial cells were found to be present around serous and mucous acini as well as the intercalated ducts of all the major glands. They appeared to be more abundant in mucous than in serous acini of the submandibular and sublingual glands. In addition, this study has demonstrated the presence of myoepithelial cells in the proximal portion of striated ducts in the submandibular gland--a location that has not previously been reported in the human.