Description
This antibody recognizes an intra-cytoplasmic marker antigen which shows a very high degree of specificity for plasma cells. This marker protein is present in normal as well as neoplastic plasma cells. Plasma cells, which are large lymphocytes derived from an antigen-specific B cell, secrete antibodies and are responsible for humoral immunity. Plasma cells differentiate from B cells upon stimulation by CD4+ lymphocytes. The B cell acts as an antigen-presenting cell (APC), consuming an offending pathogen, which is taken up by the B cell by phagocytosis and broken down within proteosomes. Plasma cells contain basophilic cytoplasm; their nucleus contains heterochromatin organized in a characteristic cartwheel arrangement. This marker antibody superbly recognizes normal and neoplastic plasma cells in routine formalin/paraffin tissue sections. It is of potential value in identifying myeloma or plasmacytoma in bone marrow or other tissues. It also helps differentiate lympho-plasmacytoid lymphoma from lymphocytic and follicular lymphoma. Note that this plasma cell marker antibody is not suitable for staining frozen tissues