Synonyms
Effector B cells; Immunoglobulin-producing B cells; Plasma B cells; Plasmacytes; Terminally differentiated B cell
Definition
Plasma cells are terminally differentiated B cells that secrete large quantities of antibody. In the case of IgE-producing plasma cells, these antibody-producing cells produce large amounts of the immunoglobulin isotype, IgE, as opposed to those that secrete any one of the other isotypes (e.g., IgM, IgG1, IgG2, IgG2a, IgG2b, IgG3, IgG4, IgA, IgA1, and IgA2). Like all white blood cells, plasma cells are ultimately of bone marrow origin where they begin development into B cells. Once leaving the bone marrow, B cells migrate to secondary lymph tissue (e.g., lymph nodes) where terminal differentiation into plasma cells is possible (Achatz-Straussberger et al. 2009).
Historical Background
A history leading to the identification of plasma cells as antibody-producing cells has been described in detail elsewhere (Potter 2007). In brief, the famous histologist...
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Schroeder, J.T. (2014). IgE-Secreting Plasma Cells. In: Mackay, I.R., Rose, N.R., Ledford, D.K., Lockey, R.F. (eds) Encyclopedia of Medical Immunology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-9194-1_291
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