Human lymphocytes: similarity of B and T cell surface morphology

Abstract

When viewed by scanning electron microscopy human lymphocytes fixed in suspension and processed with minimal cell loss appear uniformly covered with short microvilli. Contrary to previous reports, lymphocytes from subpopulations selectively enriched for T cells are villous and indistinguishable from B lymphocytes. Whereas lymphocyte surface architecture can change rapidly and substantially in response to environmental modifications, such as contact with an underlying surface, these alterations are similar for both B and T cells and do not serve to distinguish these subpopulations.