What is Élie Metchnikoff best known for?
My most significant contribution, and that for which I was recognized with the Nobel Prize, is the discovery of phagocytosis. This phenomenon revealed that immunity is not merely a chemical process, as the humoral theory proposed, but a cellular one. I observed specialized cells, which I termed phagocytes, engulfing and destroying foreign particles—such as bacteria and cellular debris—within living organisms. This was evident even in simple invertebrates like starfish larvae. It demonstrated that the body possesses an active, intrinsic defense mechanism, a cellular army ready to combat invaders. My work in *L'Immunité dans les maladies infectieuses* laid the foundation for understanding cellular immunity.
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