Autophagy as a decisive process for cell death

Abstract

Cell death: cell component recycling in health and disease A natural cellular recycling process could be harnessed or targeted for the treatment of multiple diseases including cancer and psychological disorders. Autophagy is a process that occurs within cells, whereby damaged, toxic, or obsolete cellular components are degraded and recycled to release energy and maintain balance. However, scientists now recognize that autophagy can trigger cell death under certain conditions. Seong-Woon Yu and co-workers at the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea, reviewed recent research into the mechanisms and role of autophagy in health and disease. Autophagic cell death is implicated in the suppression of tumor development; for example, inducing autophagy led to the death of precancerous cells in mice. Autophagy may also regulate immune cell populations, and play a role in the death of brain cells during chronic stress-related disorders.