Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Apoptotic Cell Clearance

Appropriate clearance of apoptotic cells is an essential step of the cell death program, defects of which contribute to many human diseases. The clearance of apoptotic cells requires their recognition and engulfment by phagocytes, formation of phagosomes, phagosome-lysosome fusion, and digestion of phagosomal contents. Here we briefly review the regulatory mechanisms of these cellular processes in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans .