Immunoreactivity of cytokeratins 7 and 20 in goblet cells and columnar blue cells in patients with endoscopic evidence of Barrett's esophagus.

CONTEXT Barrett's esophagus is characterized by the presence of goblet cells. However, when alcian-blue is utilized, another type of cells, called columnar blue cells, is frequently present in the distal esophagus of patients with endoscopic evidence of Barrett's esophagus. Cytokeratin 7 and 20 immunoreactivity has been previously studied in areas of intestinal metaplasia at the esophagogastric junction. However, the expression of these cytokeratins in columnar blue cells has not been characterized. OBJECTIVE To compare the expression of cytokeratin 7 and 20 in goblet cells and columnar blue cells in patients with endoscopic evidence of Barrett's esophagus. METHODS Biopsies from 86 patients with endoscopic evidence of Barrett's esophagus were evaluated. The biopsies were stained for cytokeratin 7 and 20. RESULTS Goblet cells were present in 75 cases and columnar blue cells in 50 cases. Overall, cytokeratin 7 expression was similar in goblet cells and columnar blue cells (P = 0.25), while cytokeratin 20 was more common in goblet cells (P <0.001). In individuals with both cell types, however, cytokeratin 7 staining was the same in goblet and columnar blue cells in 95% of the cases, and cytokeratin 20 staining was the same in 77%. CONCLUSION Goblet cells and columnar blue cells have similar immunohistochemical staining patterns for cytokeratins 7 and 20 in patients with endoscopic evidence of Barrett's esophagus.