An immunocytochemical study of the carbonic anhydrase I isoenzyme in human oral Merkel cells.

Merkel cells in human buccal mucosa and hard palate possess the carbonic anhydrase I isoenzyme (CAI). CAI colocalized immunocytochemically with a range of Merkel cell cytokeratins, namely CK 7, 8, 18, 19 and 20. No other cells in the oral epithelium were immunoreactive for the CAI antibody. The presence of the enzyme may be related to the function of sensory receptors that produce a sustained response to a maintained mechanical stimulus.