Expression of Transforming Growth Factor Beta in Giant-cell Granuloma of Jaws and Giant-cell Tumor of Bone

Peripheral and central giant-cell granulomas (PGCGs and CGCGs) and giant-cell tumor (GCT) of bone have similar histopathological features with different biological behavior. The aim of this study was to evaluate the expression of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) in these lesions by the help of immunohistochemistry.
In this study, 15 PGCGs, 15 CGCGs, and 10 GCTs were evaluated. The TGF-β immunoreactivity was assessed in mononuclear cells (MC) and multinucleated giant cells (MGC) of the studied groups. Data analysis was performed using Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn’s tests.
There was a significant difference between three studied groups regarding both MCs and MGCs. The highest mean of TGF-β immunostaining was observed in GCTs and the lowest in PGCGs. In pairwise comparison of the studied groups, a significant difference was observed between PGCGs and GCTs considering both MCs and MGCs. Additionally, a significant deference was reported only in MCs between CGCGs and GCTs.
The results may explain the different biological behavior and pathogenesis of these lesions despite the similarity of histopathologic features.