Title:Autophagy & Phagocytosis in Neurological Disorders and their Possible Cross-talk
Volume: 19
Issue: 11
Author(s): Gaigai Li, Prativa Sherchan, Zhouping Tang*Jiping Tang*
Affiliation:
- Department of Neurology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical college, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan,China
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Center for Neuroscience Research, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, CA,United States
Keywords:
Phagocytosis, autophagy, cross-talk, interactions, brain, LC3 associated phagocytosis, microglia.
Abstract: Autophagy and phagocytosis are two important endogenous lysosomal dependent clearing
systems in the organism. In some neurological disorders, excessive autophagy or dysfunctional
phagocytosis has been shown to contribute to brain injury. Recent studies have revealed that there
are underlying interactions between these two processes. However, different studies show inconsistent
results for the contribution of autophagy to the phagocytic process in diverse phagocytes and
relatively little is known about the link between them especially in the brain. It is critical to understand
the role that autophagy plays in phagocytic process in order to promote the clearance of endogenous
and exogenous detrimental materials. In this review, we highlight the studies focusing on
phagocytosis and autophagy occurring in the brain and summarizing the possible regulatory roles of
autophagy in the process of phagocytosis. Balancing the roles of autophagy and phagocytosis may
be a promising therapeutic strategy for the treatment of some neurological diseases in the future.