Another look at human granulocyte kinetics

Summary

This thesis mainly focuses on the lifespan of granulocytes in healthy humans and in patients with asthma.

Using a non-toxic label in humans, we discovered that neutrophils, have a longer lifespan than what was mentioned before. We believe that these white blood cells have a lifespan of at least 2 days, regardless of the compartment in which they reside: blood or tissue. This finding could be important in our comprehension of many diseases, in which these cells play a pivotal role.

Moreover, we have confirmed that IL-5 is important but not essential for the production of another type of white blood cells, eosinophils. We have discovered this by using the same non-toxic label in patients with asthma. that were treated with a drug targeting IL-5, called mepolizumab. Although, this finding was already proven in mice, studies in humans were scarce.

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