<Tr> <Th> TH </Th> <Td> H2. 00.03. 0.01006 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Anatomical terms of microanatomy (edit on Wikidata) </Td> </Tr> <P> Plasma cells, also called plasma B cells, plasmocytes, plasmacytes, or effector B cells, are white blood cells that secrete large volumes of antibodies . They are transported by the blood plasma and the lymphatic system . Plasma cells originate in the bone marrow; B cells differentiate into plasma cells that produce antibody molecules closely modelled after the receptors of the precursor B cell . Once released into the blood and lymph, these antibody molecules bind to the target antigen (foreign substance) and initiate its neutralization or destruction . </P> <P> Plasma cells are large lymphocytes with a considerable nucleus - to - cytoplasm ratio and a characteristic appearance on light microscopy . They have amphophilic cytoplasm and an eccentric nucleus with heterochromatin in a characteristic cartwheel or clock face arrangement . Their cytoplasm also contains a pale zone that on electron microscopy contains an extensive Golgi apparatus and centrioles (EM picture). Abundant rough endoplasmic reticulum combined with a well - developed Golgi apparatus makes plasma cells well - suited for secreting immunoglobulins . Other organelles in a plasma cell include ribosomes, lysosomes, mitochondria, and the plasma membrane . </P>

The precursor cell to a plasma cell is the