EMERGING TECHNIQUES IN M1 POLARIZED MACROPHAGE DIFFERENTIATION: COMPARATIVE EXPERIMENTAL STUDY WITH A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK INTEGRATION
Öz
Objective: This study aims to investigate the differentiation of the U937 cell line into M1-polarized macrophages using four protocols described in previous studies, but which have not been standardized on account of phenotypic plasticity and functional instability of macrophages. The resulting phenotypic alternations were characterized. By revealing the flow cytometric profiles of the M1-polarized macrophages, obtained by implementation of different chemical induction protocols on the cells, this study provides invaluable data on the use of in vitro models involving M1 polarized macrophages. Methods: Four different chemical induction strategies were implemented on U937 cells to obtain M1-polarized macrophages, each involving either phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) alone or combine with additional stimulants such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and interferon-gamma (IFN-γ). After differentiation, the expression of the macrophage-specific surface markers CD68 (M1) and CD206 (M2) was analyzed by flow cytometry, and the polarization trends were examined based on the expression of the associated markers. Results: A divergence in the M1-macrophage-specific cell surface marker was observed among the applied macrophage differentiation strategies. This finding indicates that the balance between pro-inflammatory (M1-like) and anti-inflammatory (M2-like) phenotypes is subject to variation depending on the applied protocol. Furthermore, differentiation strategies (2) yielded optimal results in terms of cells exhibiting the M1 polarized macrophage phenotype (61%). Conclusion: The findings indicate that non-standardized differentiation protocols result in the generation of distinct macrophage-like populations from U937 cells regarding polarization. These findings emphasize the importance of standardization in experimental designs and provide a framework for selecting appropriate differentiation methods in studies of macrophage biology.
Anahtar Kelimeler
Etik Beyan
Teşekkür
Kaynakça
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Ayrıntılar
Birincil Dil
İngilizce
Konular
Biyokimya ve Hücre Biyolojisi (Diğer)
Bölüm
Araştırma Makalesi
Yazarlar
Candan Altuntaş
*
0000-0002-2551-1849
Türkiye
Gökhan Duruksu
0000-0002-3830-2384
Türkiye
Fatih Hunç
0000-0001-6484-2432
Türkiye
Tülin Burhanoğlu
0000-0001-8146-3768
Türkiye
Selenay Hümeyra Furat
Türkiye
Yayımlanma Tarihi
4 Mart 2026
Gönderilme Tarihi
15 Ekim 2025
Kabul Tarihi
23 Ekim 2025
Yayımlandığı Sayı
Yıl 2026 Cilt: 9