How Mouse Macrophages Sense What Is Going On.
Macrophages are central to both innate and adaptive immunity. With few exceptions, macrophages are the first cells that sense trouble and respond to disturbances in almost all tissues and organs. They sense their environment, inhibit or kill pathogens, take up apoptotic and necrotic cells, heal tissue damage, and present antigens to T cells. Although the origins (yolk sac versus monocyte-derived) and phenotypes (functions, gene expression profiles, surface markers) of macrophages vary between tissues, they have many receptors in common that are specific to one or a few molecular species. Here, we review the expression and function of almost 200 key macrophage receptors that help the macrophages sense what is going on, including pathogen-derived molecules, the state of the surrounding tissue cells, apoptotic and necrotic cell death, antibodies and immune complexes, altered self molecules, extracellular matrix components, and cytokines, including chemokines.
Division of Inflammation Biology, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology, La Jolla, CA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
Klaus
K
Ley
Division of Inflammation Biology, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology , La Jolla, CA , USA.
Akula Bala
AB
Pramod
Division of Immune Regulation, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology , La Jolla, CA , USA.
Michael
M
Croft
Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia , Charlottesville, VA , USA.
Kodi S
KS
Ravichandran
Department of Genetics, The Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , Chapel Hill, NC , USA.
Jenny P
JP
Ting
defense; immunity; inflammation; macrophages; pathogens