The function of teleost fish lymphocytes in relation to inflammation.

Teleost fish exhibit inflammatory reactions which closely resemble those of mammals, but little is known about the mechanisms of inflammation in fish. While the leucocytes associated with inflammatory responses of fish bear close morphological similarity to those of mammals, it is not yet clear how comparable they are in function. Recently much work has been done to investigate the presence of lymphocyte subpopulations in fish, and while much of the data suggest the presence of mammalian T- and B-like lymphocytes the situation is still not clear and important differences appear to exist. Less information is available on the function of other inflammatory cell types, the neutrophils and macrophages, but once again differences between these cells in fish and mammals are apparent. The largest group of fish (the teleosts) comprises over 16,000 species which are widely evolved and differences between species should be expected and are indeed evident. Generalization concerning physiological responses of fish should therefore be made with caution.