Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 28, 2026
11:39
Assessing Autophagic Flux by Measuring LC3, p62, and LAMP1 Co-localization Using Multispectral Imaging Flow Cytometry
Published on: July 21, 2017
33.9K
Autophagy and human disease: emerging themes.
Jaime L Schneider1, Ana Maria Cuervo1
1Department of Developmental and Molecular Biology, Institute for Aging Studies, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 1300 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx, NY 10461, USA.
Current Opinion in Genetics & Development
|June 8, 2014
Summary
Autophagy, a cellular recycling process, is crucial for health and its malfunction is linked to human diseases. Understanding these defects is key for developing new therapeutic strategies.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Molecular Biology
- Pathology
Background:
- Autophagy is a fundamental cellular process involving the breakdown and recycling of intracellular components via lysosomes.
- Dysfunctional autophagy is implicated in a growing number of human diseases.
- Research focus is shifting from merely identifying autophagic defects to mechanistically understanding them.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze common themes in the interplay between autophagy and disease.
- To highlight the importance of mechanistic dissection of autophagic changes in pathologies.
- To underscore the relevance of understanding autophagy in the context of therapeutic strategies.
Main Methods:
- Review and commentary on existing research.
- Analysis of mechanistic details of autophagic defects in various diseases.
- Identification of common patterns in the relationship between autophagy and disease progression.
Main Results:
- Detailed mechanistic analyses reveal common themes in how autophagy is compromised in disease.
- Understanding the causes, consequences, and disease-evolutionary changes of autophagic defects is critical.
- Autophagy manipulation is emerging as a potential therapeutic avenue.
Conclusions:
- A deeper mechanistic understanding of autophagy's role in disease is essential.
- Investigating the interplay between autophagy and disease is vital for advancing therapeutic interventions.
- Common themes in autophagic malfunction provide insights into disease pathogenesis and treatment.
Related Concept Videos
01:36Delivery Pathways to the Lysosome
7.6K
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...
Endocytosis
In endocytosis, the cell membrane takes up macromolecules and particles from the surrounding medium. Clathrin-mediated...
7.6K
01:27Autophagy
5.0K
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,...
An autophagic pathway consists of a series of signaling events activated in response to diverse stress and physiological conditions such as food deprivation,...
5.0K
01:22Cellular Injury V: Apoptosis and Autophagy
87
Cells respond to damage and stress through highly coordinated processes that decide whether they survive or undergo controlled self-destruction. Two major pathways involved in this regulation are apoptosis, a type of programmed cell death, and autophagy, a survival mechanism that helps cells adapt to adverse conditions.ApoptosisApoptosis removes aged or injured cells to maintain tissue balance. During this process, the cell shrinks, chromatin condenses and fragments, and membrane-bound...
87
01:18Autophagic Cell Death
3.3K
Christian de Duve discovered “autophagy,” a process in which cellular components are engulfed by membrane-bound organelles called autophagosomes. The autophagosomes then fuse with lysosomes to digest the enclosed contents. Autophagy is generally activated in cells to prevent cell death. However, cell death is triggered when the damage is beyond repair.
Autophagy and Apoptosis
Autophagy can activate apoptosis. In normal conditions, the autophagy activating protein Beclin-1 and...
Autophagy and Apoptosis
Autophagy can activate apoptosis. In normal conditions, the autophagy activating protein Beclin-1 and...
3.3K
01:22Lysosomal Hydrolases
3.5K
Lysosomes are the site for the degradation of macromolecules and biological polymers released during membrane trafficking events such as secretory, endocytic, autophagic, and phagocytic pathways. The membrane-enclosed area of the lysosome, called the lumen, contains hydrolytic enzymes active in an acidic environment. These acid hydrolases are functional at a pH between 4.5 and 5 and are involved in cellular processes such as cell signaling, energy metabolism, restoration of the plasma membrane,...
3.5K
01:13The Proteasome
1.6K
Eukaryotic cells can degrade proteins through several pathways. One of the most important among these is the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. It helps the cell eliminate the misfolded, damaged, or unwarranted cytoplasmic proteins in a highly specific manner.
In this pathway, the target proteins are first tagged with small proteins called ubiquitin. This involves participation of a series of enzymes including— E1 (ubiquitin-activating enzyme), E2 (ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme), and E3...
In this pathway, the target proteins are first tagged with small proteins called ubiquitin. This involves participation of a series of enzymes including— E1 (ubiquitin-activating enzyme), E2 (ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme), and E3...
1.6K