Macrophages as APC and the dendritic cell myth

DA Hume - The Journal of Immunology, 2008 - journals.aai.org
The Journal of Immunology, 2008journals.aai.org
Dendritic cells have been considered an immune cell type that is specialized for the
presentation of Ag to naive T cells. Considerable effort has been applied to separate their
lineage, pathways of differentiation, and effectiveness in Ag presentation from those of
macrophages. This review summarizes evidence that dendritic cells are a part of the
mononuclear phagocyte system and are derived from a common precursor, responsive to
the same growth factors (including CSF-1), express the same surface markers (including …
Abstract
Dendritic cells have been considered an immune cell type that is specialized for the presentation of Ag to naive T cells. Considerable effort has been applied to separate their lineage, pathways of differentiation, and effectiveness in Ag presentation from those of macrophages. This review summarizes evidence that dendritic cells are a part of the mononuclear phagocyte system and are derived from a common precursor, responsive to the same growth factors (including CSF-1), express the same surface markers (including CD11c), and have no unique adaptation for Ag presentation that is not shared by other macrophages.
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