The Scanning Electron Microscopy of Normal Human Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes

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Abstract
A study of the effects of various sample preparation techniques for scanning EM was undertaken in an attempt to resolve conflicting descriptions of the surface topography of human peripheral blood lymphocytes. By fixing cells in suspension, a technique thought most likely to avoid the production of artefacts, no clearly defined morphological classification of lymphocytes could be made, and when T [thymus-derived] and B [bone marrow-derived]-lymphocyte enriched preparations were studied, their surfaces appeared similar. T- and B-rosetted cells showed identical morphological changes as a result of their interaction with red blood cells. The smooth cells described in other reports were found only under certain conditions of preparation. It was not possible to distinguish between T- and B cell populations, using scanning EM, on the basis of surface morphology alone.