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Updated: Jul 8, 2026

Live Cell Imaging of Early Autophagy Events: Omegasomes and Beyond
Published on: July 27, 2013
Inclusion bodies and autophagosomes: are ER-derived protective organelles different than classical autophagosomes?
Susana Granell1, Giulia Baldini
1Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Arkansas 7220, USA.
Abstract:
A hallmark of some endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-storage diseases is the formation of inclusion bodies (IBs) that are membrane-limited. The nature and function of the IBs has started to be investigated. We have recently found that sequestration of mutated alpha1-antitrypsin (ATZ) into IBs is a cell protective mechanism that maintains ER function. We also found that IBs are ER-derived and yet separate from the main ER and do not have markers of autophagosomes and lysosomes. We propose that formation of the IBs is a quality control mechanism that leads to storage of unwanted proteins outside the secretory pathway by a mechanism different than direct autophagosome formation from the ER.
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