Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER FOUR
The Role of Autophagy in
Drosophila
Metamorphosis
Kirsten Tracy, Eric H. Baehrecke
1
Department of Cancer Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
1
Corresponding author: e-mail address: eric.baehrecke@umassmed.edu
Contents
1.
Introduction
102
2. Autophagy
102
2.1 Regulatory pathways
103
2.2 Autophagosome formation
104
3.
Drosophila as a Model for Studying the Interface Between Steroid Signaling,
Nutrition, and Growth During Development
105
3.1 Steroid signaling
105
3.2 Growth and nutrient utilization
107
4. Autophagy and Drosophila Development
109
4.1 Autophagy in growth and nutrient utilization
110
4.2 Autophagy and cell death
114
5. Conclusions
117
Acknowledgments
118
References
118
Abstract
Macroautophagy (autophagy) is a conserved catabolic process that targets cytoplasmic
components to lysosomes for degradation. Autophagy is required for cellular homeo-
stasis and cell survival in response to starvation and stress, and paradoxically, it also plays
a role in programmed cell death during development. The mechanisms that regulate
the relationship between autophagy, cell survival, and cell death are poorly understood.
Here we review research in Drosophila that has provided insights into the regulation of
autophagy by steroid hormones and nutrient restriction and discuss how autophagy
influences cell growth, nutrient utilization, cell survival, and cell death.
