Division of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, United States.
Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2013 Nov;171(1):3-8. doi: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2013.07.020. Epub 2013 Aug 6.
Autophagy is an intracellular process responsible for maintaining cellular homeostasis by the removal of cytoplasmic organelles, intracellular bacteria and viruses, and is a critical component of both the innate and acquired immune systems. A failure in physiological activation, assembly and function of the autophagic pathway has been implicated in a broad range of diseases including neurogenerative diseases, cardiopathy, infectious diseases, autoimmunity and cancer. Its involvement in reproduction, however, has not been extensively studied. Its activity is fundamental to many processes across the reproduction spectrum from development of the primordial follicle and spermatozoa to embryogenesis, placental development and maintaining uterine quiescence during pregnancy. Malfunctions in autophagy are associated with deleterious repercussions throughout reproduction. In this review we examine what is known about the involvement of autophagy in gamete formation, early post-fertilization embryogenesis, placental development and parturition, and propose promising areas for future research.
自噬是一种细胞内过程，通过去除细胞质细胞器、细胞内细菌和病毒来维持细胞内的平衡，是先天和获得性免疫系统的关键组成部分。自噬途径的生理激活、组装和功能的失败与包括神经退行性疾病、心脏病、传染病、自身免疫和癌症在内的广泛疾病有关。然而，它在生殖中的作用尚未得到广泛研究。它的活性对于生殖领域的许多过程至关重要，包括原始卵泡和精子的发育、胚胎发生、胎盘发育以及妊娠期间子宫静止的维持。自噬功能障碍与生殖过程中的有害影响有关。在这篇综述中，我们研究了自噬在配子形成、受精后早期胚胎发生、胎盘发育和分娩中的作用，并提出了未来研究的有前途的领域。
