Autophagy Regulation of Mammalian Immune Cells

Autophagy is a fully competent cellular machinery able to carry out the clearance of macromolecules via fusion with the lysosome. Many studies conducted in recent years have revealed that autophagy not only plays a critical role in maintaining cell homeostasis, but can also promote bacterial elimination. Additionally, autophagy exists in most eukaryotic cells including immune cells, such as lymphocytes, neutrophils, eosinophils, mast cells, and natural killer cells. Presently, there are numerous studies focusing on the roles of autophagy in regulating immune response. Autophagy regulates the innate and adaptive immunity by modulating cell differentiation, survival, phagocytosis, antigen presentation, degranulation, and cytokine production. In this chapter, we will summarize how autophagy participates explicitly in the survival and function of the mammalian adaptive and innate immune cells.