This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages without signing in

Phagocytosis

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

A phagocyte is a cell that is able to engulf and digest bacteria, protozoa, other microbes and cell debris. Phagocytosis is the act of engulfment and digestion.

Phagocytes include white blood cells such as neutrophils and macrophages.

Phagocytosis is usually the prelude to destruction of the contents of the phagosome - phagocytic vacuole.

Defects in phagocytosis can occur at any stage e.g.:

  • reduced opsonin levels
  • cellular dysfunction e.g. diabetes
  • destructive enzyme deficiency or dysfunction e.g. chronic granulomatous disease
  • mixed defect e.g. Chediak-Higashi syndrome

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.