title: Autophagy in Cell Life and Cell Death.
abstract: Macroautophagy (hereafter referred to as autophagy) is a process used by the cell to deliver cytoplasmic components to the lysosome for degradation. Autophagy is most often associated with cell survival, as it provides cells with molecular building blocks during periods of nutrient deprivation and also aids in the elimination of damaged organelles and protein aggregates. However, autophagy has also been implicated in cell death. Here, we review what is known about autophagy, its regulation, its role both in cell life and cell death, and what is known about autophagic cell death in vivo.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular, Cell, and Cancer Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA.
authors.forename: Allyson L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Anding
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular, Cell, and Cancer Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. Electronic address: Eric.Baehrecke@umassmed.edu.
authors.forename: Eric H
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Baehrecke
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology; D001343:Autophagy / Q000502:physiology*; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D016923:Cell Death / Q000502:physiology*; D002470:Cell Survival; D004023:Dictyostelium / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D013217:Starvation; D014714:Vertebrates / Q000502:physiology
keywords: Apoptosis; Atg genes; Autophagy; Caspase; Necrosis; Programmed cell death