immunoglobulins, or antibodies. Mitogens are often used to stimulate lymphocytes and thereby assess immune function. The most commonly used mitogens in clinical laboratory medicine are: Lipopolysaccharide toxin from gram-negative bacteria is thymus-independent. They may directly activate B cells, regardless of their antigenic specificity. Plasma cells are terminally differentiated and, therefore, cannot undergo mitosis. Memory B cells can proliferate to produce more memory cells or plasma B cells. This is how the mitogen works, that is, by inducing mitosis in memory B cells to cause them to divide, with some becoming plasma cells. Other uses Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways can induce enzymes such as the COX-2 enzyme. MAPK pathways may also play a role in the regulation of PTGS2. See also Growth factor MAPK/ERK pathway Lectins References External links Cell cycle regulators Mitosis Biomolecules Immunology es:Mitógeno