Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How do neutrophils help fight bacteria at an injured area?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
connective tissue
Randomly oriented collagenous fibers of varying size in a thin spread of loose areolar connective tissue (magnified about 370 Γ).
Neutrophils are essential components of the immune system that defend the body against bacterial infection at sites of injury. Their response involves several coordinated steps:
- Migration: When tissue is injured or infected, substances released at the site trigger chemotaxis, a process that directs neutrophils to move from the blood vessels into the affected connective tissue.12
- Phagocytosis: Once at the site, neutrophils act as voracious phagocytes. They engulf bacteria, enclosing them within a membrane-bound structure called a phagosome.12
- Destruction: Neutrophils contain granules filled with potent enzymes that discharge into the phagosome to digest the bacteria. Additionally, a metabolic process within these granules generates hydrogen peroxide and superoxide, which are highly active forms of oxygen that destroy the ingested microorganisms.1
Because neutrophils have a short lifespan, they die in large numbers after completing their mission. The accumulation of these dead and dying cells at the site of inflammation is known as pus.3