Beyond self-eating: The control of nonautophagic functions and signaling pathways by autophagy-related proteins

Abstract

The identification of conserved autophagy-related proteins (ATGs) that mediate bulk degradation of cytosolic material laid the foundation for breakthroughs linking autophagy to a litany of physiological processes and disease conditions. Recent discoveries are revealing that these same ATGs orchestrate processes that are related to, and yet clearly distinct from, classic autophagy. Autophagy-related functions include secretion, trafficking of phagocytosed material, replication and egress of viral particles, and regulation of inflammatory and immune signaling cascades. Here, we define common processes dependent on ATGs, and discuss the challenges in mechanistically separating autophagy from these related pathways. Elucidating the molecular events that distinguish how individual ATGs function promises to improve our understanding of the origin of diseases ranging from autoimmunity to cancer.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Dec 13, 2017
Source ID
10.1083/jcb.201706157

Entities

People

  • Jayanta Debnath
  • Ken Cadwell

Organizations

  • Burroughs Wellcome Fund
  • Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute
  • Kenneth Rainin Foundation
  • National Institutes of Health
  • New York University
  • Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation
  • Stony Wold Herbert Fund
  • United States Department of Defense
  • University of California, San Francisco

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology

Readers

  • Immunology and Pathology
  • Nanofabrication and Microfabrication.
  • Theoretical Analysis.