[An immunoelectron microscopic study on the development of the antibody-producing cells in the guinea pig popliteal lymph nodes].

The pre-embedding immunoelectron microscopic method was used to study the development of antibody-producing cells in the guinea pig popliteal lymph nodes of 2, 3, 5, 8 and 10 days after a second challenge with horseradish peroxidase. The results indicated that the antibody activity was located in the perinuclear space, the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi complex. According to the cellular developmental stages and the characteristics of distribution of the antibody activity, the antibody-producing cells (APC) were divided into four types: (1) Type I cells (lymphocytes) exhibited many positive granules throughout the cytoplasm; (2) Type II cells (proplasmacytes) contained many positive granules and positive short bars, some of them were parallel; (3) Type III cells (proplasmacytes) contained numerous parallel positive lamellae in cytoplasm; (4) the parallel lamellae in cytoplasm of type IV cells (plasmacytes) were arranged into a network-endoplasmic reticulum. According to the kinetic change from granules, short bars to parallel lamellae and the network, the results indicated the developmental course of AFC from lymphocytes, proplasmacytes to plasmacytes.