From Free net encyclopedia

Granulocytes are a category of white blood cells characterised by the presence of granules in their cytoplasm. They are also called polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN or PML) because of the varying shapes of the nucleus, which is usually lobed into three segments. In common parlance, the term polymorphonuclear leukocyte often refers specifically to neutrophil granulocytes, the most abundant of the granulocytes.

There are three types of granulocytes:

• Neutrophil granulocytes
• Eosinophil granulocytes
• Basophil granulocytes.

Their names are derived from their staining characteristics; for example, the most abundant granulocyte is the neutrophil granulocyte, which has neutrally-staining cytoplasmic granules.

Other white blood cells which are not granulocytes are mainly lymphocytes and monocytes.

Granulocytopenia is an abnormally low concentration of granulocytes in the blood. This condition reduces the body's resistance to many infections. Closely-related terms include agranulocytosis and neutropenia.

A granuloma is a tumor containing granulocytes, and a "granulomatosis" is a necrotizing granuloma.

See also

• white blood cell
• blood count

Blood - Blood plasma - edit
Pluripotential hemopoietic stem cell | Red blood cells (Reticulocyte, Normoblast) | White blood cells
Lymphocytes (Lymphoblast)
T cells (Cytotoxic, Helper, Regulatory T cell) | B cells (Plasma cells & Memory B cells) | Natural killer cell
Myelocytes (Myeloblast)
Granulocytes (Neutrophil, Eosinophil, Basophil) | Mast cell precursors | Monocytes (Histiocyte, Macrophages, Dendritic cells, Langerhans cells, Microglia, Kupffer cells, Osteoclasts) | Megakaryoblast | Megakaryocyte | Platelets

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