Abstract
Autophagy is a catabolic process whereby cells maintain homeostasis by eliminating unnecessary proteins and damaged organelles. It may be triggered under physiological conditions, such as nutrient starvation, or in response to a variety of stress stimuli, such as exposure to radiations or cytotoxic compounds. Although autophagy is basically a protective mechanism that sustains cell survival under adverse conditions, it has been recently demonstrated that the induction of autophagic process may ultimately lead to cell death. As for the role of autophagy in cancer, it is still very controversial whether it suppresses tumorigenesis or provides cancer cells with a rescue mechanism under unfavourable conditions. Therefore, the dual role of autophagy in tumor progression and in the response of cancer cells to chemotherapeutic drugs is still open to debate. The first part of this review describes the cellular events occurring during the various phases of the autophagic process. Special attention has been given to the morphological aspects and the regulatory molecules involved in autophagic cell death. Specifically, we have focused on the proteins necessary for autophagosome formation, encoded by the ATG (AuTophaGy-related gene) gene family, and their role in the regulation of the process of autophagy. We also examined the effects of autophagy modulators on cell survival and cell death and discussed the recent efforts aimed at finding novel agents that activate or inhibit autophagy by targeting regulatory molecules of the complex autophagy pathways.
Keywords: Targeted cancer therapy, autophagy, cell death, autophagy regulators
Current Cancer Drug Targets
Title: Autophagy: Molecular Mechanisms and their Implications for Anticancer Therapies
Volume: 11 Issue: 3
Author(s): S. Meschini, M. Condello, P. Lista and G. Arancia
Affiliation:
Keywords: Targeted cancer therapy, autophagy, cell death, autophagy regulators
Abstract: Autophagy is a catabolic process whereby cells maintain homeostasis by eliminating unnecessary proteins and damaged organelles. It may be triggered under physiological conditions, such as nutrient starvation, or in response to a variety of stress stimuli, such as exposure to radiations or cytotoxic compounds. Although autophagy is basically a protective mechanism that sustains cell survival under adverse conditions, it has been recently demonstrated that the induction of autophagic process may ultimately lead to cell death. As for the role of autophagy in cancer, it is still very controversial whether it suppresses tumorigenesis or provides cancer cells with a rescue mechanism under unfavourable conditions. Therefore, the dual role of autophagy in tumor progression and in the response of cancer cells to chemotherapeutic drugs is still open to debate. The first part of this review describes the cellular events occurring during the various phases of the autophagic process. Special attention has been given to the morphological aspects and the regulatory molecules involved in autophagic cell death. Specifically, we have focused on the proteins necessary for autophagosome formation, encoded by the ATG (AuTophaGy-related gene) gene family, and their role in the regulation of the process of autophagy. We also examined the effects of autophagy modulators on cell survival and cell death and discussed the recent efforts aimed at finding novel agents that activate or inhibit autophagy by targeting regulatory molecules of the complex autophagy pathways.
Export Options
About this article
Cite this article as:
Meschini S., Condello M., Lista P. and Arancia G., Autophagy: Molecular Mechanisms and their Implications for Anticancer Therapies, Current Cancer Drug Targets 2011; 11 (3) . https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/156800911794519707
DOI https://dx.doi.org/10.2174/156800911794519707 |
Print ISSN 1568-0096 |
Publisher Name Bentham Science Publisher |
Online ISSN 1873-5576 |
Call for Papers in Thematic Issues
Advances in Cancer Biomarkers and Potential Drug Targets: From Diagnosis to Therapy
Cancer biomarkers play a crucial role in the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of cancer. They provide valuable information for cancer detection, risk assessment, treatment selection, and monitoring response to therapy. With advancements in molecular biology and high-throughput technologies, there has been an increasing interest in identifying and characterizing cancer biomarkers ...read more
Novel Therapeutic Approaches to Target Drug Resistant Tumors
With the development of disciplines such as chemical biology and molecular biology, the genes or proteins closely related to tumor occurrence and development have gradually become clear. Targeted therapies targeting these genes or proteins provide more effective methods for tumor treatment. Tumor targeted drugs generally only act on specific targets ...read more
ROLE OF IMMUNE AND GENOTOXIC RESPONSE BIOMARKERS IN TUMOR MICROENVIRONMENT IN CANCER DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT
Biological biomarkers have been used in medical research as an indicator of a normal or abnormal process inside the body, or of a disease. Nowadays, various researchers are in process to explore and investigate the biological markers for the early assessment of cancer. DNA Damage response (DDR) pathways and immune ...read more
Targeting the battlefield between host and tumor: basic research and clinical practice on reshaping tumor immune microenvironment
Immune system protects host against malignant tumors through effector cells and molecules. Cancer development and its response to therapy are regulated by inflammation, which either promotes or suppresses cancer progression. Chronic inflammation facilitates cancer progression and treatment resistance, whereas induction of acute inflammatory reactions often lead to anti-cancer immune responses. ...read more
- Author Guidelines
- Graphical Abstracts
- Fabricating and Stating False Information
- Research Misconduct
- Post Publication Discussions and Corrections
- Publishing Ethics and Rectitude
- Increase Visibility of Your Article
- Archiving Policies
- Peer Review Workflow
- Order Your Article Before Print
- Promote Your Article
- Manuscript Transfer Facility
- Editorial Policies
- Allegations from Whistleblowers
Related Articles
-
Characterization of Molecular and Functional Alterations of Tumor Endothelial Cells to Design Anti-Angiogenic Strategies
Current Vascular Pharmacology Uridine Function in the Central Nervous System
Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry Recent Patents on Genetic Programming
Recent Patents on Computer Science Pharmacological Targeting of the Hsp70 Chaperone
Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry Computational Studies on Translocator Protein (TSPO) and its Ligands
Current Topics in Medicinal Chemistry A Nanoparticle-Encapsulated Non-Nucleoside Reverse-Transcriptase Inhibitor with Enhanced Anti-HIV-1 Activity and Prolonged Circulation Time in Plasma
Current Pharmaceutical Design Metal-N-Heterocyclic Carbene Complexes as Anti-Tumor Agents
Current Medicinal Chemistry Biosynthetic Pathways to Glycosidase Inhibitors
Current Chemical Biology Analytical Approaches for Assaying Metallodrugs in Biological Samples: Recent Methodological Developments and Future Trends
Current Drug Metabolism Distinct Roles of sAPP-α and sAPP-β in Regulating U251 Cell Differentiation
Current Alzheimer Research Targeted Drug Delivery to Cancer Stem Cells through Nanotechnological Approaches
Current Stem Cell Research & Therapy Telomeric G-Quadruplex Architecture and Interactions with Potential Drugs
Current Pharmaceutical Design Vector Delivery Methods and Targeting Strategies for Gene Therapy of Brain Tumors
Current Gene Therapy Lactate Transporters and pH Regulation: Potential Therapeutic Targets in Glioblastomas
Current Cancer Drug Targets Current Advances in Vehicles for Brain Gene Delivery
Current Gene Therapy Potentials of Polymeric Nanoparticle as Drug Carrier for Cancer Therapy: With a Special Reference to Pharmacokinetic Parameters
Current Drug Metabolism Recent Progress in the Development of Anticancer Agents
Current Medicinal Chemistry - Anti-Cancer Agents The Relationship Between Lithium and Cancer Proliferation: A Case-Based Review of the Literature
Current Drug Metabolism Death Receptor Signaling in Cancer Therapy
Current Medicinal Chemistry - Anti-Cancer Agents The Scatter Factor Signaling Pathways as Therapeutic Associated Target in Cancer Treatment
Current Medicinal Chemistry