Cellular immunity Little animals Probiotic joys Commentary

Ilya Ilych (Élie) Metchnikoff immunology

Cellular immunity

• Yet
• Ilya Ilych (Élie)
• Metchnikoff
• was able to prove
• his intuitive irrational
• preconceived belief
• in the Darwinian connection
• between cells in starfish larva
• and human white-blood cells.
• He claimed these
• “eating cells”
• or phagocytes
• were the basis of immunity
• and he had the last laugh
• on advocates of the humoral theory
• that immunity is a function
• of our blood fluids
• when his proof got him the Nobel.

Little animals

• We love our little microbes
• and they love us
• swimming around in our guts
• and humorous fluids
• eating the tidbits we feed them
• little flecks like fish food
• of broken things that used to fly
• through the air and into our mouths
• looking out for other little animals
• on their Darwinian fishing trips.
• We love them unless they eat us
• in which case we don’t love them.

Probiotic joys

• Our phagocytes love those
• yeasts and active cultures—
• if they don’t kill us.
• Sprinkle it on your cereal,
• bury it in the light of the full moon,
• and make oh boy
• cheese, yogurt, and tempeh.