Macrophages: Structure, Immunity, Types, Functions
Macrophages: Structure, Immunity, Types, Functions Macrophages are mononuclear cells functioning as professional phagocytes to remove dying, dead or harmful pathogens. Macrophages are a type of white blood cell of the immune system where they engulf and digest particles that are detected as antigens by other blood cells. These are larger phagocytic cells that occur in essentially all types of tissues, and their structure and shape depend on the stage of maturation of the cells. Macrophages found in different organs have different names like the macrophages of lungs are called alveolar macrophages, while those in the liver are called Kupffer cells. Even though phagocytosis is the primary function of macrophages, these also play an essential role in nonspecific defense as well as in adaptive immunity. Macrophages are important blood cells that have important roles in almost all aspects of an organism’s biology as different subsets of macrophages are involved in different functions ...