Monocytes and macrophages, with a focus of Crohn's disease
Monocytes and macrophages are part of the body’s first line of defense, eliminating pathogens by phagocytosis or by releasing a broad array of inflammatory mediators, such as cytokines, chemokines and proteases. In humans, three subsets of monocytes are described with seemingly different functions. The classical (CD14++CD16-) monocytes, the intermediate (CD14++CD16+) monocytes and the non-classica