[Research progress on erythroblastic islands in erythroid development and related diseases]

Abstract

Erythroblastic islands (EBIs) are specialized structures that are formed by a central macrophage surrounded by maturating erythroblasts. The central macrophage mediates EBI formation and plays a crucial role in the proliferation, differentiation, enucleation, and maturation of erythroblasts. In stress erythropoiesis, the expression levels of several adhesion molecules mediating EBI formation become abnormal, leading to various erythroid diseases. These findings have indicated that targeting central macrophages may become a new therapeutic approach for treating erythroid diseases. This review summarizes the structure and function of EBIs, macrophage-erythroblast interactions in EBIs, and potential therapeutic direction of EBI central macrophages for erythroid diseases, providing new insights for the clinical treatment of erythroid diseases.