Diagnostic immunopathology.

The application of immunologic techniques to tissue sections has added a new dimension to the investigation and classification of various processes. Virtually every section of diagnostic pathology has been enhanced by using specific monoclonal antibodies or polyclonal antiserum. Neoplasms formerly diagnosed as poorly differentiated or anaplastic may be precisely identified as to their origin through the use of specific membrane or cytoplasmic markers. Other cellular products, including viruses, hormones, enzymes or highly specific proteins, are also available to study neoplastic and nonneoplastic processes. New and more specific reagents are regularly becoming available for the diagnostic repertoire of pathologists. We present some of the principles of diagnostic immunopathology to show the scope and importance of the techniques.