Monocytes


Bovine monocyte
Monocytes share a common committed stem cell with neutrophils. They are produced in marrow, circulate briefly in blood, and migrate into tissues where they differentiate further to become macrophages.

There is no storage pool of monocytes in marrow; their numbers in marrow at a given time are very small. Monocytes in blood are unevenly distributed between a marginated and circulating pool. Corticosteroids affects the monocyte count, but this differs among species, e.g. monocyte counts consistently increase in dogs treated with corticosteroids. Cytokines (e.g. M-CSF, GM-CSF) produced at sites of inflammation can increase monocyte production.

Last Updated: June 2000