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Microglia are a type of glial cell located throughout the brain and spinal cord of the central nervous system (CNS). [1] Microglia account for about 10–15% of cells found within the brain. [2] As the resident macrophage cells, they act as the first and main form of active immune defense in the CNS. [3]
Glia, also called glial cells (gliocytes) or neuroglia, are non-neuronal cells in the central nervous system (the brain and the spinal cord) and in the peripheral nervous system that do not produce electrical impulses. The neuroglia make up more than one half the volume of neural tissue in the human body. [1]
Phagocytes are usually not bound to any particular organ but move through the body interacting with the other phagocytic and non-phagocytic cells of the immune system. They can communicate with other cells by producing chemicals called cytokines , which recruit other phagocytes to the site of infections or stimulate dormant lymphocytes . [ 53 ]
They scan the central nervous system, and establish contacts with neurons, astrocytes and blood vessels. Exhibiting a high degree of motility, they migrate to the lesion site and demonstrate a potent phagocytic capacity for the clearance of debris and the elimination of pathogens. Ramified microglia in a rat cortex before traumatic brain injury.
Phagocytosis (from Ancient Greek φαγεῖν (phagein) 'to eat' and κύτος (kytos) 'cell') is the process by which a cell uses its plasma membrane to engulf a large particle (≥ 0.5 μm), giving rise to an internal compartment called the phagosome. It is one type of endocytosis. A cell that performs phagocytosis is called a phagocyte.
Macrophages are found in essentially all tissues, [4] where they patrol for potential pathogens by amoeboid movement. They take various forms (with various names) throughout the body (e.g., histiocytes, Kupffer cells, alveolar macrophages, microglia, and others), but all are part of the mononuclear phagocyte system.
In immunology, the mononuclear phagocyte system or mononuclear phagocytic system (MPS) also known as the macrophage system is a part of the immune system that consists of the phagocytic cells [1] located in reticular connective tissue. The cells are primarily monocytes and macrophages, and they accumulate in lymph nodes and the spleen.
The key cellular components of the neuroimmune system are glial cells, including astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes. [1] [2] [5] Unlike other hematopoietic cells of the peripheral immune system, mast cells naturally occur in the brain where they mediate interactions between gut microbes, the immune system, and the central nervous system as part of the microbiota–gut–brain axis.