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Glite Dictionary
neutrophil

neutrophil

1 7.7
A white blood cell that eats and destroys bacteria and other germs
  • noun
  • /ˈnjuːtrəˌfɪl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : neutrófilo
  • During an infection, neutrophils quickly gather at the site to ingest and destroy the invading pathogens.
  • neutrophil count
  • neutrophil infiltration
  • absolute neutrophil

So it's really how aggressive and how the neutrophil identifies the bacteria.

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Examples

  • Patients with active psoriasis vulgaris had a significant increase in neutrophil random migration and directed chemotaxis.

    Academic text (2007)

  • And what you're seeing here is this, this neutrophil is chasing after this bacterium.

  • Then the neutrophils can take these things up and kill them.

  • So it's really how aggressive and how the neutrophil identifies the bacteria.

    Dr Hope's Sick Notes

  • Some are called neutrophils and those are responsible for for fighting infection.

  • So that's these neutrophils are part of the innate immune system.

  • The variations in leukocyte counts were essentially caused by variations in neutrophil and lymphocyte numbers.

    Academic text (2007)

  • A complete blood cell count revealed an elevated total leukocyte count, elevated neutrophil count, and mild anemia, consistent with chronic inflammatory disease.

    Academic text (2015)

  • The neutrophils in your blood help protect your body from infections by attacking harmful bacteria.

  • A higher neutrophil count in a blood test can indicate that your body is fighting off an infection.

Synonyms

microphage
vsneutrophil
  • Specialized
1 8.6

A white blood cell that eats and digests small germs or particles

is a specific subtype specialized in destroying bacteria and staining with both dyes
neutrophile
vsneutrophil
  • Specialized
8.0

A white blood cell that eats and kills bacteria

is the standard spelling with ending -il rather than the variant ending -e

Surface Forms

neutrophil singular
neutrophils plural

Morphology

neutrophil = neutral (opaque) = neutro + phil

The term is a technical biomedical formation from combining forms meaning 'neutral' + '-phil' (affinity for) and conveys a specialised staining/functional property of a white blood cell that is not inferable by an average B1 learner from the components.

Etymology

Neutrophil breaks into neutro- 'neutral' and -phil 'loving', so a helpful way to remember it is 'neutral-loving' because these cells take up neutral stains in the lab. They are a common white blood cell that eats bacteria and helps the body fight infection.