reticuloendothelial system

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pertaining to the reticuloendothelium or to the reticuloendothelial system.
reticuloendothelial system a network of cells and tissues found throughout the body, especially in the blood, general connective tissue, spleen, liver, lungs, bone marrow, and lymph nodes. They have both endothelial and reticular attributes and the ability to take up colloidal dye particles. Some of the reticuloendothelial cells found in the blood and in the general connective tissue are unusually large in size. These cells are concerned with blood cell formation and destruction, storage of fatty materials, and metabolism of iron and pigment, and they play a role in inflammation and immunity. Some of the cells are motile—that is, capable of spontaneous motion—and phagocytic—they can ingest and destroy unwanted foreign material.

The reticuloendothelial cells of the spleen possess the ability to dispose of disintegrated erythrocytes. They do not, however, destroy hemoglobin, which is liberated in the process.

The reticuloendothelial cells located in the blood cavities of the liver are called Kupffer cells. These cells, together with the cells of the general connective tissue and bone marrow, are capable of transforming into bile pigment the hemoglobin released by disintegrated erythrocytes.
Reticuloendothelial system. From Frazier et al., 1996.





alimentary system digestive system.
apothecaries' system see apothecaries' system.
autonomic nervous system see autonomic nervous system.
avoirdupois system see avoirdupois system.
central nervous system see central nervous system.
circulatory system see circulatory system.
digestive system see digestive system.
environmental control system environmental control unit.
extrapyramidal system see extrapyramidal system.
health care system see health care system.
Home Health Care Classification system see home health care classification system.
immune system see immune system.
lymphatic system see lymphatic system.
metric system see metric system.
nervous system see nervous system.
Omaha system see omaha system.
parasympathetic nervous system see parasympathetic nervous system.
pituitary portal system hypothalamo-hypophysial portal system.
reticular activating system see reticular activating system.
reticuloendothelial system see reticuloendothelial system.
safety system see safety system.
SI system see SI units.
skeletal system see skeletal system.
sympathetic nervous system see sympathetic nervous system.
Unified Medical Language system see unified medical language system.
Unified Nursing Language system see unified nursing language system.
urogenital system genitourinary system.
vascular system circulatory system.

re·tic·u·lo·en·do·the·li·al sys·tem (RES),

a collection of putative macrophages, first described by Aschoff based on their ability to phagocytose dye, which included most of the true macrophages (now classified under the mononuclear phagocytic system) as well as cells lining the sinusoids of the spleen, lymph nodes, and bone marrow, and the fibroblastic reticular cells of hematopoietic tissues; all these latter cells are only weakly phagocytic and are not true macrophages. The RES functions to remove particulates and soluble antigen from the bloodstream but it also generates numerous inflammatory mediators, in response to immunogenic stimulation. The term persists in the literature and is often equated with the mononuclear phagocytic system.

reticuloendothelial system

The widely diffused bodily system constituting all phagocytic cells except certain white blood cells. Also called mononuclear phagocyte system.

reticuloendothelial system (RES)

a functional rather than anatomical system of the body involved primarily in defense against infection and in disposal of the products of the breakdown of cells. It is made up of macrophages; the Kupffer cells of the liver; and the reticulum cells of the lungs, bone marrow, spleen, and lymph nodes. Disorders of this system include eosinophilic granuloma, Gaucher's disease, Hand's disease, and Niemann-Pick disease.

reticuloendothelial system

An obsolescent term for the widespread system of protective MACROPHAGE (phagocyte) cells and endothelial cells found in the bone marrow, liver, spleen and elsewhere. The cells of the reticuloendothelial system include HISTIOCYTES, MONOCYTES, the KUPFFER CELLS of the liver and lung macrophages.

reticuloendothelial system



complex of functionally related anatomical structures
  • autonomic nervous system; ANS that part of the motor system investing smooth muscle of internal structures, e.g. organs, heart and vascular muscle, and gland cells; ANS is divided into sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and parasympathetic nervous system (paraSNS)

  • cardiovascular system heart, and all blood vessels (arteries, arterioles, capillaries, venules, veins)

  • central nervous system; CNS brain and spinal cord

  • circulatory system see system, vascular

  • digestive system alimentary tract from mouth to anus, and associated glands/organs

  • endocrine system all hormone-secreting tissues

  • extrapyramidal system; extrapyramidal motor system collective term denoting corpus striatum (basal ganglia), substantia nigra and subthalamic nucleus, plus descending connections to midbrain structures, and indirect connections to rhomboencephalic and spinal motor neurones; i.e. all central nervous system areas that affect motor function (motor cortex, and pyramidal [corticobulbar and corticospinal] tracts) but excluding upper motor neurones

  • limbic system array of brain structures adjacent to medial wall of cerebral hemispheres and their hypothalamic connections, influencing endocrine and autonomic function, motivational and mood states

  • lymphatic system lymphatic vessels and capillaries, lymph glands and lymphoid tissue

  • nervous system brain, spinal cord, all nerves and ganglia; i.e. collective term for central, peripheral and autonomic nervous system

  • neuromuscular system somatic musculature and associated motor neurones and nerves

  • parasympathetic nervous system; paraSNS part of ANS whose preganglionic motor neurones form the brainstem visceral motor ganglia and sacral lateral column ganglia

  • peripheral nervous system; PNS afferent peripheral sensory and efferent lower motor neurones that form the part of the nervous system outside the CNS

  • portal system blood vessels originating in one capillary bed and terminating in a second capillary bed without passing through the heart, e.g. pituitary hypophysis portal system (carrying hypothalamic trophic hormones to pituitary) or hepatic portal system (carrying nutrient-rich blood from gut wall to liver)

  • reticuloendothelial system range of macrophage-like cells within different tissues and organs, functioning as tissue-specific macrophages, e.g. Kupffer cells (in connective tissues and lymphatic structures), histiocytes (in connective tissues, e.g. dermis), alveolar phagocytes (in lung) and microglia (in nervous tissue)

  • sympathetic nervous system part of ANS whose preganglionic motor neurones lie within lateral column of thoracic, first and second lumbar segments of spinal cord

  • urinary system kidneys, ureters, bladder and urethra

  • vascular system; circulatory system cardiovascular and lymphatic systems

reticuloendothelial system (reˈ·ti·ky·lō·en·d·thēˑ·lē·l sisˑ·tm),

n a functional system of the body primarily involved in defending the body against infection and disposing the end products of cellular breakdown. It comprises the Kupffer cells within the liver; macrophages; and the reticulum cells of the bone marrow, lungs, lymph nodes, and spleen. Gaucher's disease, eosinophilic granulmoa and Niemann-Pick disease are due to dysfunctions in this system. Also called

reticuloendothelial system

a term that encompasses the monocyte-macrophage or mononuclear phagocytic system and also includes reticulum cells. It consists of a population of cells called macrophages, which are of bone marrow origin and are widely distributed throughout the body. Immature macrophages or monocytes make up about 5% of peripheral blood leukocytes. Mature macrophages are found in connective tissue (histiocytes), lining hepatic sinusoids (Kupffer cells), in the lung (alveolar macrophages), brain (microglia) and skin (Langerhans cells). They are also found in the spleen, lymph nodes and bone marrow. The major roles of these cells include: phagocytosis, antigen-processing and trapping, regulation of immune responses and the secretion of several biologically important factors such as interleukin 1, lysozyme, plasminogen activator and complement components.
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