title: Autophagy in adipose tissue and the beta cell: implications for obesity and diabetes.
abstract: Autophagy is a lysosomal degradation pathway recycling intracellular long-lived proteins and damaged organelles, thereby maintaining cellular homeostasis. In addition to inflammatory processes, autophagy has been implicated in the regulation of adipose tissue and beta cell functions. In obesity and type 2 diabetes autophagic activity is modulated in a tissue-dependent manner. In this review we discuss the regulation of autophagy in adipose tissue and beta cells, exemplifying tissue-specific dysregulation of autophagy and its implications for the pathophysiology of obesity and type 2 diabetes. We will highlight common themes and outstanding gaps in our understanding, which need to be addressed before autophagy could be envisioned as a therapeutic target for the treatment of obesity and diabetes.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Medicine, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Rinke
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Stienstra
authors.forename: Yulia
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Haim
authors.forename: Yael
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Riahi
authors.forename: Mihai
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Netea
authors.forename: Assaf
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rudich
authors.forename: Gil
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Leibowitz
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D001343:Autophagy / Q000502:physiology*; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D007333:Insulin Resistance / Q000502:physiology; D050417:Insulin-Secreting Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D009765:Obesity / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology