A high level of glycosaminoglycan-synthesis of squamous cell carcinoma of the parotid gland.

Glycosaminoglycan content of a squamous cell carcinoma derived from the parotid gland was analyzed. The tumor tissue contained a large amount of glycosaminoglycans, and the amount was strikingly larger than found in other kinds of tumor tissues (pleomorphic adenoma, scirrhous carcinoma, myxoma, etc.) analyzed previously. A culture cell line established from this tumor showed a morphologic characteristic of differentiated squamous cell carcinoma, in vitro, forming many tonofilaments in the cytoplasm and numerous desmosomes in the intercellular connection. The carcinoma cell synthesized and secreted a large amount of glycosaminoglycans, consisting mainly of hyaluronic acid. The amount of 3H-labelled hyaluronic acid secreted by this carcinoma cell was about 20-fold larger than that by HeLa cell or KB cell. Conceivably, a high level of hyaluronic acid synthesis is one of the biologic characteristics of squamous cell carcinoma derived from the duct epithelium of the salivary gland.