Clearance of dying cells is the final stage of cell death and leads to anti-inflammatory response of the immune system. However, uncleared corpses can disintegrate or Remarkably, even in tissues with high cellular turnover, apoptotic cells are rarely seen because of efficient clearance mechanisms in healthy individuals. Recently, significant progress has been made in understanding the steps involved in prompt cell and debris clearance in vivo. These include the sensing of corpses and debris via "find me" signals released or expressed by corpses, the recognition of corpses and debris via "eat me" signals and their cognate receptors, opsonization of corpses and the signaling pathways that regulate cytoskeletal rearrangement necessary for engulfment. The understanding of these processes shed light on resolution of inflammation, the development of autoimmunity, and the pathophysiology of increasing numbers of diseases. Questions that are evolving include the specific mechanisms at different organs, the implications of the recently identified mechanisms to disease pathophysiology and putative therapeutic intervention.