hof

hof

(hōf),

The hollow in the cytoplasm of a cell that lodges the nucleus.

[Ger. court]

The focal perinuclear clearing seen at the nuclear concavity in plasma cells and in other cells—e.g., lymphoblasts, Reed-Sternberg cells, or osteoblasts—that have eccentrically placed nuclei; the hof is best seen with Wright-Giemsa or another Romanowsky stain; it may also be seen in the inclusions in Chlamydia-infected epithelial cells in trachoma inclusion conjunctivitis, where the ‘hof’ is created by the nucleus