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[[File:Neutrophil Phagocytosis.png|thumb|right|300px|Phagocytosis by a neutrophil]]

[[File:Neutrophil Phagocytosis.png|thumb|right|300px|Phagocytosis by a neutrophil]]

Phagocytosis is a very primitive system of defence against infection, having even been shown to exist in invertebrates. The process of phagocytosis itself is a form of endocytosis (cell eating), with vesicular internalisation being the method of removal of pathogens and dead cells (those that have undergone '''apoptosis''', or '''Programmed Cell Death'''). This internalised vesicle is referred to as the "'''phagosome'''".

Phagocytosis is a very primitive system of defence against infection, having even been shown to exist in invertebrates and single cell organisms. The discovery was made in starfish larvae by Elle Metchnikoff who subsequently won the Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology in 1908. The process of phagocytosis itself is a form of endocytosis (cell eating), with vesicular internalisation being the method of removal of pathogens and dead cells (those that have undergone '''apoptosis''', or '''Programmed Cell Death'''). This internalised vesicle is referred to as the "'''phagosome'''".