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Related Concept Videos

Autophagy01:27

Autophagy

Autophagy is a self-digesting process by which a cell protects itself from threats both within and outside the cell, ranging from abnormal proteins to invading bacteria. In this process, obsolete components of the cell and invading microbes are degraded by hydrolytic enzymes active in an acidic environment of the lysosomal lumen.
An autophagic pathway consists of a series of signaling events activated in response to diverse stress and physiological conditions such as food deprivation,...
Inorganic Nitrogen Assimilation01:22

Inorganic Nitrogen Assimilation

Nitrogen is an essential element in biological systems, forming a crucial component of proteins, nucleic acids, and other cellular constituents. Many bacteria and archaea acquire nitrogen in the form of nitrate (NO₃⁻) or ammonia (NH₃), which are then assimilated into biomolecules through specific enzymatic pathways.Assimilatory Nitrate ReductionWhen nitrate enters the cell, it undergoes a two-step reduction process known as assimilatory nitrate reduction. Initially, the enzyme nitrate reductase...
Amino Acid Catabolism01:18

Amino Acid Catabolism

Microorganisms rely on proteins as an essential carbon and energy source, particularly in environments with limited polysaccharides or lipids. However, proteins are too large to cross the plasma membrane unaided, necessitating enzymatic degradation. Microbes secrete extracellular proteases and peptidases that hydrolyze proteins into peptides, which can then be transported across the membrane. Once inside the cell, intracellular proteases degrade these peptides into free amino acids, which...
Urea Cycle01:23

Urea Cycle

The urea cycle describes how liver cells convert ammonia to urea. Ammonia is a toxic waste product of protein catabolism. Land animals must convert ammonia into the less toxic urea which can be safely eliminated by the kidneys through urine. Marine animals excrete ammonia directly, and the surrounding water dilutes the ammonia to safe levels.
Delivery Pathways to the Lysosome01:36

Delivery Pathways to the Lysosome

Eukaryotic cells use different mechanisms to eliminate toxic waste obsolete and worn-out substances. Lysosomes play a pivotal role in this, and hence, these substances are carried to the lysosome from other parts of the cell and extracellular space through different pathways. The most elaborately studied pathways to the lysosome are the endocytic pathways.
Endocytosis
In endocytosis, the cell membrane takes up macromolecules and particles from the surrounding medium. Clathrin-mediated...
Metabolism of Chemolithotrophs01:15

Metabolism of Chemolithotrophs

Chemolithotrophs are microorganisms that obtain energy by oxidizing inorganic molecules such as hydrogen gas (H₂), ammonia (NH₃), reduced sulfur compounds (H₂S, S²⁻), and ferrous iron (Fe²⁺). Unlike heterotrophic organisms that rely on organic carbon, chemolithotrophs transfer electrons from these inorganic donors to the electron transport chain (ETC), generating a proton motive force (PMF) that drives ATP synthesis through oxidative phosphorylation. However, because inorganic electron donors...

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Updated: May 26, 2026

The Lactate Dehydrogenase Sequestration Assay — A Simple and Reliable Method to Determine Bulk Autophagic Sequestration Activity in Mammalian Cells
09:34

The Lactate Dehydrogenase Sequestration Assay — A Simple and Reliable Method to Determine Bulk Autophagic Sequestration Activity in Mammalian Cells

Published on: July 27, 2018

Autophagy and ammonia.

Heesun Cheong1, Tullia Lindsten, Craig B Thompson

  • 1Cancer Biology and Genetics and Immunology Programs, Sloan-Kettering Institute, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA.

Autophagy
|December 16, 2011
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Autophagy, a cellular process, is induced by ammonia, an amino acid metabolism byproduct. Mammalian autophagy regulation is more complex than previously understood from yeast studies.

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Quantitative Analysis of Autophagy using Advanced 3D Fluorescence Microscopy
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Last Updated: May 26, 2026

The Lactate Dehydrogenase Sequestration Assay — A Simple and Reliable Method to Determine Bulk Autophagic Sequestration Activity in Mammalian Cells
09:34

The Lactate Dehydrogenase Sequestration Assay — A Simple and Reliable Method to Determine Bulk Autophagic Sequestration Activity in Mammalian Cells

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Quantitative Analysis of Autophagy using Advanced 3D Fluorescence Microscopy
09:59

Quantitative Analysis of Autophagy using Advanced 3D Fluorescence Microscopy

Published on: May 3, 2013

Area of Science:

  • Cellular biology
  • Molecular biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Autophagy is crucial for cellular homeostasis during metabolic stress.
  • Yeast studies identified Atg1 kinase as a key initiator of autophagy.
  • The ULK (unc-51 like autophagy activating enzyme) family are mammalian Atg1 orthologs.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the complexity of autophagy induction in mammals.
  • To compare mammalian autophagy regulation with yeast models.
  • To validate ammonia as an autophagy inducer in mammalian cells.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) cell lines.
  • Generated MEF cell lines deficient for both ulk1 and ulk2 genes.
  • Assessed autophagy induction in response to various stimuli.

Main Results:

  • Autophagy induction in mammals is more intricate than in yeast.
  • ULK1 and ULK2 are essential for autophagy.
  • Ammonia, a byproduct of amino acid metabolism, strongly induces autophagy.

Conclusions:

  • Mammalian autophagy regulation involves complex pathways beyond yeast models.
  • Ammonia serves as a significant signaling molecule for autophagy induction.
  • Further research is needed to fully elucidate mammalian autophagy pathways.