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PMID: 24669294 Published · epublish English Journal Article Review

The M1 and M2 paradigm of macrophage activation: time for reassessment.

F1000prime reports ·Vol. 6 ·2014-00-00 ·Pages 13

Martinez FO, Gordon S

Abstract

Macrophages are endowed with a variety of receptors for lineage-determining growth factors, T helper (Th) cell cytokines, and B cell, host, and microbial products. In tissues, macrophages mature and are activated in a dynamic response to combinations of these stimuli to acquire specialized functional phenotypes. As for the lymphocyte system, a dichotomy has been proposed for macrophage activation: classic vs. alternative, also M1 and M2, respectively. In view of recent research about macrophage functions and the increasing number of immune-relevant ligands, a revision of the model is needed. Here, we assess how cytokines and pathogen signals influence their functional phenotypes and the evidence for M1 and M2 functions and revisit a paradigm initially based on the role of a restricted set of selected ligands in the immune response.

Authors & Affiliations
2 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Martinez Fernando O
Botnar Research Center, Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences, University of Oxford Windmill Road, OX3 7LD, Oxford UK.
Gordon Siamon
Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3RE UK.
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Article Info
Journal
F1000prime reports
Abbr.
F1000Prime Rep
ISSN
2051-7599
DOI
10.12703/P6-13
Published
2014-00-00
Epub
2014-00-03
Pages
13
Language
English
Region
England
NLM ID
101599397
PMCID
PMC3944738
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.12703/P6-13 PMC Full Text
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