Regression of autophagic vacuoles in seminal vesicle cells following cycloheximide treatment.

A 0.25% fraction of cytoplasm was present in the autophagic vacuole compartment of the seminal vesicle cells of fasted and estrogen-treated mice. Autophagic vacuoles regressed rapidly after administration of 0.2 mg/g body weight cycloheximide to the animals and the decay appeared to follow first-order kinetics (average half-life 5.8 min, rate constant of regression 0.120 min-1). Our observations suggest that the drug suppressed the formation of autophagosomes. The fraction of cytoplasm removed by autophagy from the cells was estimated to be about 1.8% h under steady-state conditions.