A 24-year-old recent Russian immigrant describes a long history of weight loss, night sweats and nagging cough. Imaging and biopsy of his lungs reveal numerous apical granulomas with central caseous necrosis. Surrounding the necrotic areas are large cells with abundant pale cytoplasm. Which of the following surface markers is most specific for those cells?

Question

A 24-year-old recent Russian immigrant describes a long history of weight loss, night sweats and nagging cough.  Imaging and biopsy of his lungs reveal numerous apical granulomas with central caseous necrosis.  Surrounding the necrotic areas are large cells with abundant pale cytoplasm.  Which of the following surface markers is most specific for those cells?

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Eductional Objective: The caseating granulomas of tuberculosis are almost always surrounded by large epithelioid macrophages with pale pink granular cytoplasm.  CD14 is a surface marker specific to the monocyte-macrophage cell lineage.

A 24-Year-Old Recent Russian Immigrant Describes a Long History of Weight