Autophagy fights disease through cellular self-digestion

Until recently, autophagy, or cellular self-digestion, was thought of primarily as part of the cell's garbage disposal system. Now it is know to be involved in cellular protein and organelle degradation during development as well as during adaptations to changing environmental conditions. Many intriguing questions remain to be answered about this process. For example, how can this one pathway be involved in cytoprotection as well as cell death? What is the connection between autophagy and human disease or ageing? In a review, Mizushima et al. consider recent progress in the field. Autophagy, or cellular self-digestion, is a cellular pathway involved in protein and organelle degradation, with an astonishing number of connections to human disease and physiology. For example, autophagic dysfunction is associated with cancer, neurodegeneration, microbial infection and ageing. Paradoxically, although autophagy is primarily a protective process for the cell, it can also play a role in cell death. Understanding autophagy may ultimately allow scientists and clinicians to harness this process for the purpose of improving human health.