Stains & CD markers
CD68
Copyright: 2002-2022, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.
PubMed Search: CD68[title]
CD68
Author: Nat Pernick, M.D.
Topic Completed: 1 February 2002
Minor changes: 17 December 2021
Copyright: 2002-2022, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.
PubMed Search: CD68[title]
Table of Contents
Definition / general | Uses by pathologists | Microscopic (histologic) images | Positive staining - normal | Positive staining - tumors | Negative stainingCite this page: Pernick N. CD68. PathologyOutlines.com website. https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/cdmarkerscd68.html. Accessed January 21st, 2022.
Definition / general
- Also called KP1, macrosialin
- May have role in macrophage phagocytic activities
- Specific to lysosomes, not cell lineage; epithelial cells activated by E. coli may be CD68+ (Toxicol In Vitro 2002;16:405)
- Binds to tissue and organ specific lectins or selectins, allowing homing of macrophage subsets to particular sites
- References: OMIM #153634, Am J Clin Pathol 2004;122:794
Uses by pathologists
- Marker of histiocytes and histiocytic tumors
- Presence in postportoenterostomy liver biopsies for extrahepatic biliary atresia is associated with favorable prognosis (J Pediatr Surg 2005;40:1252)
- HAM56 is an older marker that stains histiocytes, endothelium, adenocarcinoma but not osteoclast-like giant cells
- Mac387 is an older histiocytic marker that also stains squamous mucosa
Microscopic (histologic) images
Case #32
Atypical epithelioid angiomyolipoma of kidney
Images hosted on other servers:
Acute demyelinating disease (fig 9)
AML-M5 (fig 5b)
Cholesterol granuloma of temporal bone
Castleman's disease (Figure 16)
Crohn's disease
Crystal storing histiocytosis within lymphoma (fig 9)
Follicular dendritic cell tumor (fig 13)
Gaucher's disease (presumptive) in spleen
HIV associated encephalopathy
Kikuchi's disease (fig 13)
Multiple sclerosis
Myeloid sarcoma, uterus
Kikuchi-like lymphadenopathy #1 in lupus
Plasmacytoid monocyte tumor
Viral myocarditis
Positive staining - normal
- Macrophage / monocytes (including Kupffer cells and microglia), basophils, dendritic cells, fibroblasts (Verh Dtsch Ges Pathol 2003;87:215, Ann Rheum Dis 2004;63:774), Langerhans cells, mast cells, myeloid cells, CD34+ progenitor cells, neutrophils, osteoclasts, activated platelets and B and T cells
- Fetal small intestinal inclusions (Cesk Patol 2001;37:7)
Positive staining - tumors
- AML-M4 / M5, angiosarcoma, atypical fibroxanthoma
- B cell lymphoma (some), blastic NK lymphoma
- Calcifying aponeurotic fibroma (Hum Pathol 1998;29:1504), cellular fibrous histiocytoma (83%, J Cutan Pathol 2006;33:353), chronic intervillositis (Hum Pathol 2000;31:1389)
- Dermal dendrocytoma, dermatofibroma (42%, J Cutan Pathol 2006;33:353)
- Erdheim-Chester disease (Am J Surg Pathol 1999;23:17)
- Follicular dendritic cell tumor (Am J Surg Pathol 1998;22:1048)
- Gaucher cells (Am J Clin Pathol 2004;122:359), giant cell angioblastoma, giant cell tumors (extrahepatic biliary tree-Am J Surg Pathol 2006;30:495; soft tissue-Am J Surg Pathol 2000;24:386, synovial type-Hum Pathol 2003;34:670), granular cell astrocytoma (Am J Clin Pathol 2006;126:602), granular cell tumor (Arch Pathol Lab Med 2004;128:771), granulocytic (myeloid) sarcoma (Am J Surg Pathol 1997;21:1156)
- Hairy cell leukemia, hereditary disorders (ceruloplasmin deficiency-macrophages in striatum; #2), histiocytic sarcoma (Am J Surg Pathol 2001;25:1372), HIV encephalopathy (Am J Pathol 2004;164:2089)
- Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor / pseudotumor (Am J Clin Pathol 2003;120:56), interdigitating dendritic cell sarcoma (Am J Surg Pathol 2002;26:530, Am J Clin Pathol 2001;115:589)
- Juvenile xanthogranuloma (Am J Surg Pathol 2003;27:579)
- Kikuchi's disease (Am J Surg Pathol 1999;23:1040)
- Langerhans cell histiocytosis (usually, Blood 2001;97:1241)
- Malignant fibrous histiocytoma, mastocytosis and mast cell disease (Am J Surg Pathol 2000;24:703), melanoma (Mod Pathol 1999;12:1072), mycobacterial pseudotumor (Am J Surg Pathol 1999;23:656), myelodysplasia bone marrow nodules (Am J Clin Pathol 2003;120:874)
- Neuroma, nodular fasciitis
- Osteoclast-like giant cells in tumors of pancreas and urinary tract (Arch Pathol Lab Med 1998;122:266, Mod Pathol 2006;19:161)
- Pigmented villonodular synovitis (Hum Pathol 2003;34:65), pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma, plexiform xanthomatous tumor (Am J Surg Pathol 2002;26:1302), primitive non-neural granular cell tumor of skin (Am J Surg Pathol 2005;29:927)
- Renal cell carcinoma (Am J Clin Pathol 1995;103:425), reticulohistiocytoma (Am J Surg Pathol 2006;30:521), Rosai-Dorfman disease (Mod Pathol 2001;14:172)
- Schwannoma, signet ring-like cells (benign, Am J Clin Pathol 2001;115:249), splenic diffuse hemangioma (Am J Surg Pathol 1997;21:827), splenic littoral cell angioma (Am J Surg Pathol 2006;30:1036), steatohepatitis (Mod Pathol 2002;15:699)
- Whipple’s disease
- Xanthelasma (Arch Pathol Lab Med 2003;127:e417), xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis (Arch Pathol Lab Med 2005;129:e209) and xanthoma (Hum Pathol 2003;34:814)
Negative staining
- Atypical fibrous histiocytoma (Am J Surg Pathol 2002;26:35), megakaryocytes
