The diversity of the immunohistological staining pattern of Sternberg-Reed cells.

Lymph node tissue of eight cases of Hodgkin's disease of all different subtypes was studied with an immunoperoxidase technique for the detection of immunoglobulin G (IgG), J chain, kappa and lambda light chains, and alpha-1-antitrypsin in different types of Sternberg-Reed cells. It was found that L&H type Sternberg-Reed cells of the nodular lymphocyte predominance type contained IgG, J chain, and one type of light chain per individual cell. It is concluded that these findings indicate that L&H type Sternberg-Reed cells produce IgG and, consequently, are B immunoblasts. Typical and lacunar type Sternberg-Reed cells of mixed cellularity and nodular sclerosis subtypes were found to contain IgG and both types of light chains per individual cell. J chain was absent from these cells are alpha-1-antitrypsin was found in some of them in a paranuclear pattern, comparable to that in histiocytes. It is concluded that these findings exclude the production of IgG by these types of Sternberg-Reed cells and it is suggested that these Sternberg-Reed cells may be related to histiocytes on the basis of the similarity in the staining pattern for alpha-1-antitrypsin.