Asteroid body

An asteroid body is a microscopic finding seen within the giant cells of granulomas in diseases such as sarcoidosis and foreign-body giant cell reactions.^[1]

Two asteroid bodies. H&E stain.

There is controversy about their composition. Traditionally, they were thought to be cytoskeletal elements and to consist primarily of vimentin.^[2] However, more recent research suggested that that was incorrect and that they may be composed of lipids arranged into bilayer membranes.^[3]

They were also once thought to be related to centrioles,^[4] an organelle involved in cell division in eukaryotes.

See also

• Asteroid
• Centriole
• Schaumann body
• Granulomatous diseases
• Sarcoidosis

Additional images

• 
  Micrograph of asteroid bodies in pulmonary sarcoidosis. H&E stain.
• 
  Micrograph of asteroid bodies in pulmonary sarcoidosis. H&E stain.
• 
  Asteroid body in sarcoidosis.