To develop novel and effective treatments for ischemic stroke, we investigated the neuroprotective effects of the macrolide antibiotic azithromycin in a mouse model system of transient middle cerebral artery occlusion. Intraperitoneal administration of azithromycin significantly reduced blood-brain barrier damage and cerebral infiltration of myeloid cells, including neutrophils and inflammatory macrophages. These effects resulted in a dose-dependent reduction of cerebral ischemic damage, and in a remarkable amelioration of neurological deficits up to 7days after the insult. Neuroprotection was associated with increased arginase activity in peritoneal exudate cells, which was followed by the detection of Ym1- and arginase I-immunopositive M2 macrophages in the ischemic area at 24-48h of reperfusion. Pharmacological inhibition of peritoneal arginase activity counteracted azithromycin-induced neuroprotection, pointing to a major role for drug-induced polarization of migratory macrophages towards a protective, non-inflammatory M2 phenotype.