Recycling of trace metals by the bulk autophagy in the budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Abstract

Autophagy is a bulk degradation process, widely conserved among eukaryotic organisms. Since elucidation of autophagic machinery, there is a growing number of reports about diverse physiological roles of autophagy. The diversity of physiological roles of autophagy is caused by dual roles of autophagic process, either in providing deficient nutrients by degrading cytoplasmic components, or in removal of harmful or unnecessary components. Autophagy produces a variety of compound, and influence cell metabolism. These make the physiological roles of autophagy extremely complicated. Adaptation of starvation is one of the physiological roles of autophagy. In this research highlight, we summarize and discuss the known physiological roles of autophagy across various organism and propose unsolved problems of the physiology of autophagy in yeast. Then, we introduce our recent findings regarding the roles of autophagy in recycling the trace metals.