Abstract: Objective To study the neuron-glial antigen 2(NG2)-positive macrophages and their bioactivity in primary cultured mouse bone marrow derived macrophages. Methods Bone marrow single cell suspension was isolated from femur of 6-8 weeks old Kunming mouse co-cultured with L929 supernatant. NG2 expression was detected by immuno-fluorescence staining microscopy at 1, 3, 5 and 7 days. The proliferation and phagocytosis of NG2-positive macrophages were examined by immunofluorescence staining microscopy and EdU labeling. Results The expression of NG2 markers and positive rate of EdU in NG2-positive macrophages all increased gradually with the prolongation of culture time(P＜0.05). Conclusions NG2-positive macrophages from mouse bone marrow show significant proliferation and phagocytosis function.

Key words: macrophage, neuron-glial antigen 2(NG2), proliferation, phagocytosis