[Biology Class Notes] on Difference Between Granulocytes and Agranulocytes Pdf

The first line of defense for our human body against diseases, foreign material, or bacteria is the white blood cells. The white blood cells, also known as leukocytes, are the cells of the immune system which protect our bodies. The presence of white blood cells can be found throughout the blood and the lymphatic system. The white blood cells count in the body gives an indication of the presence of diseases in the body. 

The leukocytes can largely be divided into various categories. Based on the structure, they are divided into granulocytes and agranulocytes. Based on the cell lineage, they can be classified into two categories, – lymphoid cells and myeloid cells. The further categorization of the white blood cells can be done on functional and structural characteristics. Based on this the various types of white blood cells that are present in the body are eosinophils, neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and basophils. 

The granulocytes are present within the cytoplasm in the form of granules while agranulocytes exist without the granules. The granulocytes have 4 lobes and agranulocytes are single lobes. We will have a brief discussion of some of these differences between granulocytes and agranulocytes. 

Granulocytes and Agranulocytes

The white blood cells are the soldiers of the body which work against any foreign invaders or disease carriers. Depending on the differences in structure, these white blood cells are categorized into granulocytes and agranulocytes. All of the white blood cells have a nucleus present within them unlike the platelets and the red blood cells. We will have a brief look at granulocytes and agranulocytes before documenting the differences between them.

Granulocytes have a specific amount of granules that are present in the cytoplasm. The nucleus which is present in the granulocytes is lobed in three segments. The most abundant granulocytes are the neutrophils. The other granulocytes are basophils, mast cells, and eosinophils. These granulocytes are present in the innate immune system. 

Agranulocytes are white blood cells with no granules in their cytoplasm. They have one lobe present within the nucleus. The monocytes and lymphocytes are the agranulocytes that are present within the human body. 

Difference between Granulocytes and Agranulocytes

The granules are present in the cytoplasm of granulocytes and these granules are absent in agranulocytes. Granulocytes from 65% of the white blood cells and agranulocytes make up the rest 35% of the white blood cells. The granulocytes originate from the bone marrow while agranulocytes originate from the lymph nodes. The granulocytes are also known as polymorphonuclear leukocytes while agranulocytes are known as mononuclear leukocytes. The granulocytes have various lobes in the nucleus and agranulocytes only have one lobe in the nucleus.