Utility of immunohistochemical techniques in identifying various differentiation stages of T and B cell lineage and the related neoplastic transformed cells.

The lymphoid tissue provides the most productive conditions to the application of immunohistochemical techniques. This tissue is composed of many B and T phenotypically different cell populations ranging from stem cells to completely differentiated lymphocytes which can be identified by using monoclonal antibodies. These techniques also are of great help in classifying the malignant lymphocyte counterparts and, thus, in defining diagnostic and prognostic characters of different lymphomas/leukaemias.