Ultrastructural localization of peroxidase activity in developing neutrophil granulocytes from human bone marrow.

Developing neutrophil granulocytes of normal human bone marrow were investigated with the diaminobenzidine technique to determine the ultrastructural localization of peroxidase activity. Neutrophil granulocytes have three types of granule: nucleated, azurophil, and specific granules. These granules are produced consecutively during the eomyelocyte stage, the promyelocyte stage, and the myelocyte stage, respectively. The organelles involved in the production of granules, i.e., the nuclear envelope, rough endoplasmic reticulum, and Golgi apparatus, are peroxidase positive during the eomyelocyte and promyelocyte stages and peroxidase negative thereafter. This pattern differs for the granules themselves: nucleated granules are negative in the eomyelocyte and become positive in the promyelocyte. Azurophil granules become positive in the promyelocyte. Specific granules are negative. Our observations highly suggest that small Golgi-derived peroxidase-positive vesicles are involved in the maturation of both nucleated granules and azurophil granules.