IMMUNOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -In addition, macrophages play an important role in eliminating diseased and damaged cells through their programmed cell death. Generally, macrophages ingest and degrade dead cells, debris, tumor cells, and foreign materials.

Detailed explanation-2: -Recent findings indicate that macrophages do not always wait for cells to die before initiating phagocytic attack, and may kill living cells by eating them, if these cells express sufficient levels of externalized PtdSer.

Detailed explanation-3: -Macrophages respond to foreign bodies due to their ability to recognize self and non-self. Antigen-presenting cells, which include macrophages and dendritic cells, are able to process antigens during their and present them to the cells of the adaptive immune system.

Detailed explanation-4: -phagocytosis, process by which certain living cells called phagocytes ingest or engulf other cells or particles. The phagocyte may be a free-living one-celled organism, such as an amoeba, or one of the body cells, such as a white blood cell.

Detailed explanation-5: -As described above, macrophages play a key role in removing dying or dead cells and cellular debris. Erythrocytes have a lifespan on average of 120 days and so are constantly being destroyed by macrophages in the spleen and liver.