inclusion body

Introduction

Structures formed in the nucleus or cytoplasm (or both) of cells infected with virus* or other infectious agent.

Etiology

Nuclear inclusion bodies:

• granular, hyaline or amorphous (Cowdry type A)
  • Herpes simplex
  • yellow fever
• Cowdry type B
  • Rift Valley fever
  • poliomyelitis

Cytoplasmic inclusion bodies:

• acidophilic
  • variola
  • vaccinia
  • rabies
  • molluscum contagiosum
• basophilic
  • trachoma
  • psittacosis
  • lymphogranuloma venereum

Erythrocyte inclusion bodies:

• Plasmodium (malaria)
• Babesia

Laboratory

• mannose eosin methylene blue & Giemsa stain render inclusion bodies visible by light microscopy.
• viral inclusion bodies in specimen

* Inclusion bodies may contain infectious viral particles.

Non-viral forms of inclusion bodies may occur (i.e. inclusion body myositis)

More general terms

• abnormal morphologic structure (malformation)

More specific terms

• viral inclusion