Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov (Russian: Илья́ Ильи́ч Ме́чников, also seen as Élie Metchnikoff) (16 May [O.S. 3 May] 1845 – 16 July 1916) was a Russian zoologist best known for his pioneering research into the immune system. In particular, he is credited with the discovery of phagocytes (macrophages) in 1882, and his discovery turned out to be the major defence mechanism in innate immunity. He and Paul Ehrlich were awarded the 1908 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "in recognition of their work on immunity". He is also credited by some sources with coining the term gerontology in 1903, for the emerging study of aging and longevity. He established the concept of cell-mediated immunity, while Ehrlich that of humoral immunity. Their works are regarded as the foundation of the science of immunology. In immunology he is given an epithet the "father of natural immunity".  Read more..

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Élie_Metchnikoff", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.

On May 15, 2015, the Post of Moldova has released a new commemorative prepaid envelope (the 7th issued this year) dedicated to the 170th anniversary (to the day) of the birth of Russian scientist, zoologist, anatomist and bacteriologist Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov (1845-1916). This envelope (L 1.75), designed by Elena Karachentseva and printed in 10,000 copies, shows a portrait of Mechnikov on the stamp as well as a photograph of the scientist in his laboratory at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, if I'm not wrong. The two top left stamps (L 5) are part of a definitive series of 6 stamps, issued on March 7, 2015, dedicated to coats of arms of cities, the Moldova capital's one here. Read more..