Immunohistochemical Evaluation of Calretinin in Ameloblastoma, Odontogenic keratocyst and Dentigerous Cyst

Background: Calretinin plays an important role in calcium signalling and naturally expressed in nervous tissues. Various stud- ies suggest that calretinin may involve in amelogenesis. Calretinin also seems to have role in tumorigenesis since it regulates apoptosis. Aim: To find out whether there is any variation in expression of calretinin in Ameloblastoma, Odontogenic keratocyst and Dentigerous cyst. Materials & Methods: A total of 50 samples each from Ameloblastoma, odontogenic keratocyst and Dentigerous cyst were retrospectively studied. The immunohistochemical expression of calretinin was assessed by using calretinin antibody. Results: Chi square test was used to compare categorical parameters between groups. Kruskal Wallis Test and Mann-Whitney U Test were carried out to compare quantitative parameters among the groups. Statistically, significant values were obtained when comparing the immunohistochemical expression of calretinin in various odontogenic lesions studied and it was highest in ameloblastoma followed by OKC. None of the cases of dentigerous cyst were immunopositive for calretinin. Conclusion: There was statistically significant variation in the expression of calretinin among ameloblastoma, OKC and dentig- erous cyst and it contributes to the aggressiveness of those lesions.