Abstract SY36-02: Autophagy in cell death and cancer

Abstract

Abstract Macroautophagy (autophagy) is a catabolic membrane-trafficking process that serves to deliver cytoplasmic constituents to lysosomes for degradation. The process functions in the majority, if not all, cells as a means to turnover damaged proteins and organelles. Autophagy therefore functions as a cellular homeostatic mechanism which when perturbed leads to accumulation of misfolded proteins and non-functional organelles and loss of cellular integrity. The levels and cargoes of autophagy can respond to various extracellular and intracellular cues to bring about selective and sometimes contrasting effects. For example, in relation to cell death, autophagy has, depending on context, been reported to have both positive and negative effects on cell viability. Due the multiple roles of autophagy in regulating cellular homeostasis, it is not a surprise that changes in autophagy can have effects on tumour development. It is not yet clear, however, when autophagy is tumour-promoting or tumour-suppressive in any given context. We have therefore been addressing this issue by studying the role of autophagy at different stages of tumour development in vivo. Data from these studies will be presented alongside our in vitro studies to understand the role of autophagy in tumour suppression. Work in our laboratory is supported by Cancer Research UK and The Association for International Cancer Research. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr SY36-02. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-SY36-02