Research progress of protein phosphatase 2A in cellular autophagy

Abstract

Autophagy is an important metabolic process. It facilitates the recycling of intracellular substances by removing, degrading, and recycling damaged organelles, proteins, and lipids in lysosomal vacuoles and plays an important role in maintaining cellular homeostasis. Protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) is a key serine/threonine phosphatase and one of the main cell cycle regulatory enzymes. As PP2A activity is essential for the cell, dysfunction or dysregulation of PP2A can affect various physiological processes, including autophagy. Here, we review the autophagy-related factors that target PP2A in different diseases, such as breast cancer, colorectal cancer, liver cancer, and Alzheimer's disease, to maintain cell homeostasis by modulating the level of autophagy through mTORC1/ULK1 pathway, MAPK pathway, or AMPK pathway.