Macrophage heterogeneity and acute inflammation.

In this Viewpoint, we concentrate on the aspects of macrophage biology that we believe are fundamental for an appropriate contextual understanding of macrophage function during acute inflammation. These are the different origins of macrophage populations (and the implications of this for the renewal of these populations in the adult); and the impact of specific homeostatic or disease-associated microenvironments upon cellular heterogeneity, activation and effector functions.