Isolation, Culture, and Functional Evaluation of Bone Marrow-Derived Macrophages

Macrophages are cellular components of the immune system that are essential for responding to pathogens, initiating inflammation, and maintaining tissue homeostasis. Isolation, culture, and functional characterization of bone marrow-derived macrophages from mice are exceptionally powerful techniques used to examine aspects of macrophage biology in vitro. These cells can be used to study effector functions, such as phagocytosis, cytokine secretion, oxidative burst, migration, antigen processing and presentation, in the context of wild-type, gene-ablated, and/or transgenic mice. The quantity, purity, and ease of culture of these cells enhance their utility for primary cell cultures. This chapter outlines protocols used to generate, quantitate, and functionally evaluate macrophages derived from bone marrow precursor cells.