Eosinophils

Cassian Andor representing an eosiniphil Cassian Andor is a Rebel spy and hitman, he represents an eosinophil in Immunology Wars. He goes rogue and disobeys orders, his targets are specific, but can sometimes cause damage to bystanders.

Eosinophils are produced in the bone marrow and circulate in the blood before being recruited to tissues of the body that interact with the outside environment, such as the lungs and gastrointestinal tract. Their main role is to destroy cells that the immune system has marked for removal; the chemical mediators they release help mediate inflammation and act in the defence against parasitic infection, especially helminths (worms).

Alongside basophils and mast cells, eosinophils have been implicated in allergic responses and asthma, where the release of the same chemicals that are beneficial when fighting off a parasite cause damage to our own tissue, such as the lungs.

Several diseases have now been linked to an increased number or overactive eosinophils, including allergic asthma and eosinophilic oesophagitis, which results in patients having difficultly swallowing, nausea and vomiting.

Cells

Tissues

Soluble Mediators

Pathogens

Vaccination