Department of Biology, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
Autophagy. 2010 Jul;6(5):575-88. doi: 10.4161/auto.6.5.11962. Epub 2010 Jul 1.
Autophagic process is one of the best examples of a conserved mechanism of survival in eukaryotes. At the molecular level there are impressive similarities between unicellular and multicellular organisms, but there is increasing evidence that the same process may be used for different ends, i.e., survival or death, at least at cellular levels. Arthropods encompass a wide variety of invertebrates such as insects, crustaceans and spiders, and thus represent the taxon in which most of the investigations on autophagy in non-mammalian models are performed. The present review is focused on the genetic basis and the physiological meaning of the autophagic process on key models of arthropods. The involvement of autophagy in programmed cell death, especially during oogenesis and development, is also discussed.
自噬过程是真核生物中一种保守的生存机制的最好例证。在分子水平上，单细胞生物和多细胞生物之间存在着令人印象深刻的相似之处，但越来越多的证据表明，同一过程可能被用于不同的目的，即在细胞水平上，至少可以用于生存或死亡。节肢动物包括各种各样的无脊椎动物，如昆虫、甲壳类动物和蜘蛛，因此代表了在非哺乳动物模型中进行自噬研究的主要类群。本综述重点介绍了节肢动物关键模型中自噬过程的遗传基础和生理学意义。还讨论了自噬在程序性细胞死亡中的作用，特别是在卵子发生和发育过程中。
