Dualistic role of autophagy in cancer progression

Abstract

This review aims to characterize the dualistic role of autophagy in both the suppression and propagation of carcinogenesis. The process of autophagy is responsible for maintaining the delicate balance between the survival and death of a cell, and in the past years it has been studied profoundly. It has been proven that the role of autophagy in maintaining genomic and structural integrity can lead to the suppression of carcinogenesis in its early stages. However, once carcinogenesis has occurred, the process of autophagy may contribute to the survival of tumor cells and, consequently, lead to tumor progression. Additionally, autophagy can modulate the response of the tumor cells to therapy, leading to radiotherapy and chemotherapy resistance or reduced susceptibility to anticancer drugs that propagate autophagy-related cell death. Although the role and course of autophagy are not yet fully known, the essence of it seems to be within our grasp. We have observed the identification of an increasing number of autophagy-related genes (ATG). Therefore, more research concerning its molecular course and potential applications in cancer treatment and prevention needs to be conducted.

Baicalein 5, 6, 7-trimethyl ether from Physalis pubescens L. leaves ameliorate the effect of epirubicin in HepG2 cancer cells by inducing apoptosis and autophagy

“…Autophagy is a homeostatic process which plays a critical role in cancer. The autophagy process can be a tumor suppressor or a pro-oncogenic mechanism [12]. In our study, the gene expression of autophagy associated gene (ATG7) was determined using RT-qPCR as marker of autophagy.…”

“…The autophagy process can be a tumor suppressor or a pro-oncogenic mechanism and many studies have revealed the dual role of autophagy, promoting either cell death or cell survival in cancer progression [12]. Consequently, regulation of autophagy using both natural product or synthetic drugs can be used as reliable interventional strategies for cancer treatment [13].…”

The Role of Chloride Channels in the Multidrug Resistance

“…The reason for it might be ClC5 inducing autophagy by dephosphorylation, for inactivating the AKT-mTOR signaling pathway. That is because phosphorylation of AKT can activate the serine/threonine kinase mTOR, which will result in upregulating the autophagy [139].…”

6-(Methylsulfonyl) Hexyl Isothiocyanate: A Chemopreventive Agent Inducing Autophagy in Leukemia Cell Lines

“…The term autophagy, from the Greek autòs “oneself” and phagéin “to eat”, is a homeostatic, catabolic process highly conserved in all eukaryotes [ 1 , 2 ]. Three main types of autophagy have been characterized in mammalian cells: microautophagy, Chaperone-Mediated Autophagy (CMA), and macroautophagy; those are morphologically different processes, but all three end with the degradation and recycling of cellular components within lysosomes [ 3 , 4 , 5 ].…”