Morphology of non-lymphatic cells in the lymph node of the nude mouse

The lymph nodes of normal mammals contain several types of non-lymphatic cells (for review see Lennert and Müller-Hermelink, 1975). In both the cortex and the medulla, endothelial cells of blood vessels and of lymph sinuses as well as fibroblastic reticular cells and macrophages are present in varying numbers. In addition to these non-specific elements, the B and T cell-dependent areas of the lymph node are populated by specific non-lymphatic cells. Thus, the primary and secondary follicles of the lymph nodes (and of other peripheral lymphatic organs) contain dendritic reticular cells (DRC), which are characterised by branching cytoplasmic processes (for review see Nossal and Ada, 1971). These cells form a delicate, three-dimensional network which supports the lymphocyte population composed predominantly of B cells. As has been shown by several autoradiographic and immunohistochemical studies, DRCs are able to fix antigen-antibody complexes at the surface of their cytoplasmic processes (Nossal and Ada, 1971). It is assumed that these cells play a substantial role in the proliferation and differentiation of B lymphocytes. These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.