The relatively long-lived phagocytic cell of mammalian tissues that are derived from blood MONOCYTES. Main types are PERITONEAL MACROPHAGES; ALVEOLAR MACROPHAGES; HISTIOCYTES; KUPFFER CELLS of the liver; and OSTEOCLASTS. They may further differentiate within chronic inflammatory lesions to EPITHELIOID CELLS or may fuse to form FOREIGN BODY GIANT CELLS or LANGHANS GIANT CELLS. (from The Dictionary of Cell Biology, Lackie and Dow, 3rd ed.)
    

concept

Movie of calcium waves during apoptosis, confocal

Phagocytic vesicle and lysosomes inside a macrophage

Macrophage with phagocytic vesicle and lysosomes

Macrophages

Images

Catalogue

The reticuloendothelial system : a comprehensive treatise / [series editors, Herman Friedman, Mario Escobar, and Sherwood M. Reichard].

Heterogeneity of mononuclear phagocytes / edited by Othmar Förster, Maurice Landy.

The macrophage.

Macrophage showing the nucleus in blue and the microtubules in green.

Interferons and the immune system / volume editors, Jan Vilček, Edward De Maeyer.