Leukocyte-promoting factor
Leukocyte-promoting factor
Leukocyte-promoting factor (pronunciation: loo-ko-site pro-mo-ting fac-tor), also known as granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), is a glycoprotein that stimulates the bone marrow to produce granulocytes and stem cells and release them into the bloodstream.
Etymology
The term "leukocyte-promoting factor" is derived from the Greek words "leukos" meaning white, "kytos" meaning cell, "pro" meaning before, "moting" derived from the Latin word "movere" meaning to move, and "factor" from the Latin word "facere" meaning to make or do. Thus, the term essentially refers to a factor that promotes the movement or production of white cells.
Function
The primary function of the leukocyte-promoting factor is to stimulate the production of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell, in the bone marrow. It also promotes the survival, proliferation, differentiation, and function of neutrophil precursors and mature neutrophils.
Related Terms
- Granulocyte: A type of white blood cell that has small granules, which contain proteins. The specific types of granulocytes are neutrophils, eosinophils, and basophils.
- Stem Cell: An undifferentiated cell of a multicellular organism which is capable of giving rise to indefinitely more cells of the same type, and from which certain other kinds of cell arise by differentiation.
- Neutrophil: A neutrophil is a type of white blood cell that is one of the first cell types to travel to the site of an infection. Neutrophils help fight infection by ingesting microorganisms and releasing enzymes that kill the microorganisms.
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Leukocyte-promoting factor
- Wikipedia's article - Leukocyte-promoting factor
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