Auer rods (or Auer bodies) are large,

crystalline A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...

cytoplasm In cell biology, the cytoplasm is all of the material within a eukaryotic cell, enclosed by the cell membrane, except for the cell nucleus. The material inside the nucleus and contained within the nuclear membrane is termed the nucleoplasm. ...

ic inclusion bodies sometimes observed in myeloid

blast Blast or The Blast may refer to: *Explosion, a rapid increase in volume and release of energy in an extreme manner *Detonation, an exothermic front accelerating through a medium that eventually drives a shock front Film * ''Blast'' (1997 film), ...

cells during

acute myeloid leukemia Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer of the myeloid line of blood cells, characterized by the rapid growth of abnormal cells that build up in the bone marrow and blood and interfere with normal blood cell production. Symptoms may inclu ...

, acute promyelocytic leukemia, high-grade

myelodysplastic syndromes A myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) is one of a group of cancers in which immature blood cells in the bone marrow do not mature, and as a result, do not develop into healthy blood cells. Early on, no symptoms typically are seen. Later, symptoms may ...

and

myeloproliferative disorder Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are a group of rare blood cancers in which excess red blood cells, white blood cells or platelets are produced in the bone marrow. ''Myelo'' refers to the bone marrow, ''proliferative'' describes the rapid growt ...

s. Composed of fused

lysosomes A lysosome () is a membrane-bound organelle found in many animal cells. They are spherical vesicles that contain hydrolytic enzymes that can break down many kinds of biomolecules. A lysosome has a specific composition, of both its membrane prote ...

and rich in lysosomal enzymes, Auer rods are

azurophil An azurophilic granule is a cellular object readily stainable with a Romanowsky stain. In white blood cells and hyperchromatin, staining imparts a burgundy or merlot coloration. Neutrophils in particular are known for containing azurophils load ...

ic and can resemble needles, commas, diamonds, rectangles, corkscrews, or (rarely) granules.

Eponym

Although Auer rods are named for American physiologist

John Auer John Auer (March 30, 1875 – April 30, 1948) was an American physiologist and pharmacologist. He published nearly 150 papers during his career and is credited with the first description of Auer rods. Auer also contributed to the study of anap ...

, they were first described in 1905 by Canadian physician Thomas McCrae, then at

Johns Hopkins Hospital The Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, located in Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. It was founded in 1889 using money from a bequest of over $7 million (1873 m ...

, as Auer himself acknowledged in his 1906 paper. Both McCrae and Auer mistakenly thought that the cells containing the rods were

lymphoblast __NOTOC__ A lymphoblast is a modified naive lymphocyte with altered cell morphology. It occurs when the lymphocyte is activated by an antigen (from antigen-presenting cells) and increased in volume by nucleus and cytoplasm growth as well as new mRN ...

Additional images

Image:Myeloblast with Auer rod smear 2010-01-27.JPG, Bone marrow aspirate showing acute myeloid leukemia with Auer rods in several

s Image:Myeloblast whith Auer rod 2009-09-21.JPG Image:Myeloblast with Auer Rod smear 2009-11-23.JPG

References

External links

Image
at NIH/ MedlinePlus
Slides
at wadsworth.org

at

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

{{Abnormal clinical and laboratory findings for blood Leukemia Histopathology