Odontogenic keratocyst (OKC), and ameloblastoma (AB) aggressive epithelial odontogenic tumors with a high recurrence rate though, their aggressive nature are not totally understood, Many epithelial tumors are characterized by stromal reaction, Myofibroblast is one of stromal component that could contribute to the biologic behavior of these lesions, Fifteen cases of AB and OKC were operated on under general anesthesia, all cases were subjected to immunohistochemical staining with alpha-smooth muscle actin and flow cytometry analysis, ameloblastoma showed expression of α muscle actin between the follicles as well as around the blood vessels, while in OKC the expression was mostly in connective tissue wall of cyst lining, as well as flow cytometry analysis showed tumors were diploid and showed a percentage of cells in S -phase higher than 26%. OKC had a higher value than AB but the values were close and statistically insignificant, we concluded that the immunohistochemical expression of MF in AB & OKC has insignificant difference may contribute to the similar proliferative potential of both AB& OKC, as well The high proliferation rate of OKC reinforces its classification as a benign odontogenic neoplasm rather than a cyst
Objective To detect the proliferative potential of odontogenic keratocyst, versus ameloblastoma and their correlation to presence of stromal myofibroblasts