Kupffer cell

This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Kupffer cell is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:

Related Sponsors

BM Pharmacy Generic pharmaceuticals at unbeatable prices. Insomnia, men's health, hair health, pain control. bmpharmacy.com
Online Pharmacy Carisoprodol, tadalafil, sildenafil, vardenafil and more... xlpharmacy.com
MedBasket.com Discreet. Inexpensive. Fast shipping. Great selection. What more can we say? medbasket.com
Frugalmed 2000 reasons to shop with us first. frugalmed.com
Ads by Tiva

Kupffer cells, also known as Browicz-Kupffer cells, are specialized macrophages located in the liver that form part of the reticuloendothelial system (aka: mononuclear phagocyte system).

Contents

History

The cells were first observed by Karl Wilhelm von Kupffer in 1876.[1] The scientist called them "sternzellen" (star cells or stellate cells) but thought falsely that they were an integral part of the endothelium of the liver blood vessels and that they originated from it. In 1898, after several years of research, Tadeusz Browicz, a polish scientist, identified them correctly as macrophages. [2][3]

Development

Their development begins in the bone marrow with the genesis of promonocytes and monoblasts into monocytes and then on to peripheral blood monocytes completing their differentiation into Kupffer cells.[4]

Function

The red blood cell is broken down by phagocytic action and the hemoglobin molecule is split. The globin chains are reutilized while the iron containing portion or heme is further broken down into iron which is reutilized and bilirubin, which is conjugated with glucuronic acid within hepatocytes and secreted into the bile.

Helmy et al. identified a receptor present in Kupffer cells, the complement receptor of the immunoglobulin family (CRIg). Mice without CRIg could not clear complement system-coated pathogens. CRIg is conserved in mice and humans and is a critical component of the innate immune system.[5]

References

  1. ^ Haubrich WS. Kupffer of Kupffer cells. Gastroenterology 2004;127:16. PMID 15236167.
  2. ^ Szymanska R, Schmidt-Pospula M. Studies of liver's reticuloendothelial cells by Tadeusz Browicz and Karl Kupffer. A historical outline. Arch Hist Med (Warsz). 1979;42(3):331-6. PMID 386989.
  3. ^ Stachura J, Galazka K. History and current status of Polish gastroenterological pathology. J Physiol Pharmacol. 2003 Dec;54 Suppl 3:183-92. PMID 15075472.
  4. ^ Naito M, Hasegawa G, Takahashi K. Development, differentiation, and maturation of Kupffer cells. Microsc Res Tech 1997;39:350-64. PMID 9407545.
  5. ^ Helmy K, Katschke K, Gorgani N, Kljavin N, Elliott J, Diehl L, Scales S, Ghilardi N, van Lookeren Campagne M (2006). "CRIg: a macrophage complement receptor required for phagocytosis of circulating pathogens". Cell 124 (5): 915–27. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2005.12.039. PMID 16530040. 

External links

v • d • e
Blood
General
Lymphoid – WBC
Myeloid – WBC
Myeloid – RBC

Wikipedia content modification information:

  • This page was last modified on 3 July 2008, at 21:36.

Wikipedia Authorship and Review

Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.

Wikipedia Usage Guidelines

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Kupffer cell".

The URL for this specific entry is:

All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.