title: Immunochemical demonstration of J chain: a marker of B-cell malignancy.
abstract: Many B-cell lymphomas can be shown to contain cytoplasmic immunoglobulin which is characteristically monotypic with respect to light chains. In Hodgkin's disease, however, the Reed-Sternberg cells have been shown to contain both immunoglobulin light chains. This finding, which is also present in some other lymphomas, has been used as evidence both for and against a B-cell derivation of these cells. J chain is present in normal immunoblasts irrespective of the class of immunoglobulin being synthesised and, thus, should be present in tumour cells that synthesise cytoplasmic immunoglobulin. In a series of lymphomas, in which the cells could be shown to contain immunoglobulin, J chain was present only in those tumours exhibiting a monotypic light chain staining pattern. J chain was not present in Reed-Sternberg cells and other cells staining polytypically for light chains. Demonstration of J chain is thus a useful marker for B-cell lymphomas; its absence in Reed-Sternberg cells indicates that the immunoglobulin in these cells is not synthesised by them and cannot be used as evidence for their derivation from B-cells.
mesh_terms: D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D006644:Histiocytes / Q000276:immunology; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D007070:Immunoglobulin A / Q000032:analysis; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000032:analysis; D007144:Immunoglobulin J-Chains / Q000032:analysis*; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000032:analysis; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D007070:Immunoglobulin A; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007144:Immunoglobulin J-Chains; D007075:Immunoglobulin M