Figure 4.
Expression of pituitary CTLA-4 in the human pituitary gland at autopsy. A: In the index case, the few remaining acini of endocrine cells in the pituitary strongly express CTLA-4. The inset shows that CTLA-4–positive granules are found inside the cytosol of infiltrating macrophages. B: Histopathologic score to quantify the expression of pituitary CTLA-4 protein in the study population; lettered boxes correlate to the boxed areas in the indicated panels. The shaded area above the dotted lines indicates the specimens that express CTLA-4 at high intensity in most endocrine pituitary cells. C: A pituitary adenoma expressing CTLA-4 strongly. D: A pituitary adenoma expressing CTLA-4 at moderate levels in a subset of endocrine cells; the inset shows a pituitary adenoma negative for CTLA-4. Scale bars: 50 μm (A and C); 20 μm (D). Original magnifications: ×100 (A, main image); ×260 (A, inset, and D, main image); ×160 (C and D, inset).