Two distinct interstitial macrophage populations coexist across tissues in specific subtissular niches
Svetoslav Chakarov, Hwee Ying Lim, Leonard Tan, Sheau Yng Lim, Peter See, Josephine Lum, Xiaomeng Zhang, Shihui Foo, Satoshi Nakamizo, Kaibo Duan, Wan Ting Kong, Rebecca Gentek, Akhila Balachander, Daniel Carbajo, Camille Blériot, Benoît Malleret, John Kit Chung Tam, Sonia Baig, Muhammad Shabeer, Sue‐Anne Toh, Andreas Schlitzer, Anis Larbi, Thomas Marichal, Bernard MALISSEN, Jinmiao Chen, Michael Poidinger, Kenji Kabashima, Marc Bajénoff, Lai Guan Ng, Véronique Angeli, Florent Ginhoux
Abstract
Tissue macrophages have a split personality Resident tissue macrophages (RTMs) reside in various tissue-specific niches during development. They evince microenvironment-directed phenotypes that support host defense and tissue homeostasis. Chakarov et al. used single-cell RNA sequencing and fate-mapping of murine lung RTMs to interrogate RTM-subset heterogeneity, interrelationships, and ontogeny (see the Perspective by Mildner and Yona). In addition to alveolar macrophages, they identified two different interstitial macrophage populations. One population mostly abutted nerve fibers; the other population preferentially localized near blood vessels and appeared to support vessel integrity and inhibit inflammatory cell infiltration into tissues. Science , this issue p. eaau0964 ; see also p. 1154