Carbonic anhydrase is abundant in fenestrated capillaries of cherry hemangioma.

Abstract

A strong correlation has been found between carbonic anhydrase (CA) activity and fenestrations in juxtaepithelial capillaries of several tissues, including psoriatic lesions of human skin. In the present study we demonstrate that the majority of the capillaries in cherry hemangiomas are fenestrated and histochemically react CA positively. Obviously the occurrence of CA in these capillaries corresponds to the fenestrations of venous capillaries, which are numerously revealed by electron microscopy. In normal undiseased skin no capillary staining for CA was observed. Therefore in a large proportion of the capillaries of cherry hemangiomas the correlation between fenestrations and CA activity also exists. We suggest that the histochemical demonstration of CA activity might serve as a sensitive and simple marker for fenestrated capillaries in skin tissue.