Table 3.
Presence of genetically aberrant (aneusomic) cells in the different cellular compartments of premalignant CIN lesions as detected by FISH targeting of SOX2 copy numbers
| Histological classification | SOX2 pattern | Number of areasa | Size of aberrant area | (Para)basal cell layers | Intermediate cell layers | Superficial cell layers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Normal | 1 | 29 | Absent | N | N | N | |
| LSIL | CIN1 | 1 | 16 | Absent | N | N | N |
| 2 | 1 | Small | A/N | A/N | N | ||
| HSIL | CIN1-2 | 1 | 2 | Small | A/N | N | N |
| CIN2 | 1 | 8 | Medium | A | A/N | N | |
| 2 | 5 | Large | A | A | N | ||
| CIN 2–3 | 2 | 4 | Large | A | A | N | |
| 3 | 4 | Large | N | A/N | N | ||
| CIN3 | 2 | 8 | Large | A | A | N | |
| 3 | 15 | Large | N | A | A/N | ||
N Normal (Disomy; copy number for SOX2 = 2), A: Aneusomy (copy number for SOX2 > 2), A/N Aneusomy/Normal (Aneusomic cells mixed with disomic cells), LSIL low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion, HSIL high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion. For a detailed description of the genetic classification, see the Supplemental Materials and Methods section. Note that Pattern 3 strongly deviated from Pattern 2. In all 19 cases, the SOX2-negative cells in the basal/parabasal cell layers were disomic for the SOX2 gene, while the SOX2-positive intermediate cell layers showed aneuploidy for both targets in nearly all cases
aNot all cases mentioned in Table 2 were available for FISH analysis. Only the number of analyzed areas is indicated.