In vitro formation of eosinophil-like colonies by lymph node cells from a human lymphoma.

In vitro culturing of lymph node cells from a human non-Hodgkin lymphoma gave rise to several colonies of eosinophil-like cells. Eosinophil colonies originated from cells that during the first week of culture had a fibroblast appearance and were adherent to plastic. The tissue culture was sacrificed after 14 days. At that time each colony was formed by 20-50 cells with intracytoplasmic peroxidase-positive and eosinophilic granules. Cells comprising the colonies exhibited different degrees of differentiation. Some of the cells (26.6%) were mature eosinophils, the majority (66.8%) resembled eosinophil myelocytes, and some other (4.6%) had a fibroblast appearance. One or two multinucleated giant cells were often present in the center of most of the colonies. These cells contained up to 10 nuclei, which were arranged in a "ring form" or centrally located; giant cells with a single, central, large, multilobed nucleus were also observed. Cells belonging to other myelopoietic lines could not be identified in the tissue culture. Histological examination of the lymph node revealed extensive presence of eosinophils at various degrees of maturation but absence of other myelopoietic lines.