PLASMA CELLS OF HOFBAUER 341 
ever, and this is true also of early stages in the degeneration of 
the fixed or already detached mesenchyme cell, which later 
forms the typical, degenerating, wandering cell. However, it 
represents but one stage in this degeneration. 
It is significant that, although Hofbauer suggested that these 
cells might have a digestive or assimilative function, he, too, 
frequently found fragmentation of the nuclei and complete dis- 
appearance of the cytoplasm and even of the cell itself. All 
stages of degeneration, as manifested by crenation of both cyto- 
plasm and nucleus, even to complete disappearance of the cell, 
can easily be found. Signet-ring forms are common, and the 
nuclei are found in all stages of extrusion and degeneration. 
The cell boundaries are often ragged, the nuclei crenated and 
pyenotic, the cytoplasm granular, vacuolated, webbed or fenes- 
trated, until finally nothing but a faint ring or shadow form 
without a trace of a nucleus remains. However, in these trans- 
parent or shadow forms the nuclei, if not previously extruded 
or dissolved, are frequently represented by a mere outline or 
by a faint trace of one. Since all stages between the latter and 
the well-preserved cells, without vacuoles and well-preserved 
nucleus and cytoplasm, and also with processes, occur in good 
material, one can scarcely doubt their origin. 
Undoubted instances of mitoses were never seen in any Hof- 
bauer cells, no matter how well preserved. This no doubt can 
be accounted for by the fact that from the time the mesenchyme 
cells retract their processes and become isolated in the ground 
substance of the villus, they are in a stage of degeneration. 
Under such circumstances one would hardly expect to see in- 
stances of cell division, although these possibly may be simu- 
lated by necrobiotic phenomena. 
Hofbauer (’05), and also in his first publication, stated that 
the cells described by him increase by mitoses which are fre- 
quent. He also found examples of what seemed to be instances 
of pluripolar mitoses, but also noted fragmentation of the nuclei. 
Acconci (714) also found mitotic figures in cells designated lipoid 
interstitial cells by him, but most investigators say nothing 
about this. On the contrary, a number of them specifically 
