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Connexins modulate intercellular communication when assembled in gap junctions. Compromised macroautophagy increases cellular communication due to failure to degrade connexins at gap junctions. Nedd4-mediated ubiquitinylation of the connexin molecule is required to trigger its autophagy-dependent internalization and degradation.

The transcription factor hiF1 is mostly regulated by the oxygen-dependent proteasomal degradation of the labile subunit hiF1A. recent data showed degradation of hiF1A in the lysosome through chaperone-mediated autophagy (cMA). however the molecular mechanism involved has not been elucidated. This study shows that the KFerQ-like motif, that has been identified in all cMA substrates, is required to mediate the interaction between hiF1A and the chaperone hSpA8. Moreover, mutations in the KFerQ-like motif of hiF1A preclude the interaction with the cMA receptor LAMp2A, thus inhibiting its lysosomal degradation. importantly, we show for the first time that the ubiquitin ligase STUB1 is required for degradation of hiF1A in the lysosome by cMA. indeed, mutations in STUB1 that inhibit either the ubiquitin ligase activity or its ability to bind to hSpA8, both prevent degradation of hiF1A by cMA. Moreover, we show that hiF1A binds to and is translocated into intact lysosomes isolated from rat livers. This new pathway for degradation of hiF1A does not depend on the presence of oxygen and is activated in response to nutrient deprivation such that the levels of hiF1A bound to cMA positive lysosomes significantly increase in starved animal livers and the binding of hiF1A to LAMp2A increases in response to serum deprivation. Moreover, excessive degradation of hiF1A by cMA compromises cells' ability to respond to and survive under hypoxia, suggesting that this pathway might be of pathophysiological importance in conditions that combine hypoxia with starvation. leucinylleucinylleucinal/proteasome inhibitor; MTT, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide; RCC, renal cell carcinoma; Serpinb, serpin peptidase inhibitor, clade B/Ovalbumin; SLC2A1, solute carrier family 2 (facilitated glucose transporter)/glucose transporter; STUB1, STIP1 homology and U-box containing protein 1; TPR, tetratricopeptide repeat; UPS, ubiquitin-proteasome system; VEGFA, vascular endothelial growth factor A; u-box, modified RING finger domain lacking the metal-chelating residues

Continuous renewal of intracellular components is required to preserve cellular functionality. In fact, failure to timely turnover proteins and organelles leads often to cell death and disease. Different pathways contribute to the degradation of intracellular components in lysosomes or autophagy. In this review, we focus on chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA), a selective form of autophagy that modulates the turnover of a specific pool of soluble cytosolic proteins. Selectivity in CMA is conferred by the presence of a targeting motif in the cytosolic substrates that, upon recognition by a cytosolic chaperone, determines delivery to the lysosomal surface. Substrate proteins undergo unfolding and translocation across the lysosomal membrane before reaching the lumen, where they are rapidly degraded. Better molecular characterization of the different components of this pathway in recent years, along with the development of transgenic models with modified CMA activity and the identification of CMA dysfunction in different severe human pathologies and in aging, are all behind the recent regained interest in this catabolic pathway.

The plasma membrane contributes to formation of autophagosomes, the double-membrane vesicles that sequester cytosolic cargo and deliver it to lysosomes for degradation during autophagy. In this study, we have identified a regulatory role for connexins (Cx), main components of plasma membrane gap junctions, in autophagosome formation. We have found that plasma membrane-localised Cx proteins constitutively downregulate autophagy via a direct interaction with several autophagy-related proteins involved in the initial steps of autophagosome formation such as Atg16 and components of the PI3K autophagy initiation complex (Vps34, Beclin-1 and Vps15). On nutrient starvation, this inhibitory effect is released by the arrival of Atg14 to the Cx-Atg complex. This promotes the internalization of Cx-Atg along with Atg9, which is also recruited to the plasma membrane in response to starvation. Maturation of the Cx-containing pre-autophagosomes into autophagosomes leads to degradation of these endogenous inhibitors, allowing for sustained activation of autophagy.

Glycative stress, caused by the accumulation of cytotoxic and irreversibly-formed sugar-derived advanced glycation end-products (AGEs), contributes to morbidity associated with aging, age-related diseases, and metabolic diseases. In this review, we summarize pathways leading to formation of AGEs, largely from sugars and glycolytic intermediates, and discuss detoxification of AGE precursors, including the glyoxalase system and DJ-1/Park7 deglycase. Disease pathogenesis downstream of AGE accumulation can be cell autonomous due to aggregation of glycated proteins and impaired protein function, which occurs in ocular cataracts. Extracellular AGEs also activate RAGE signaling, leading to oxidative stress, inflammation, and leukostasis in diabetic complications such as diabetic retinopathy. Pharmaceutical agents have been tested in animal models and clinically to diminish glycative burden. We summarize existing strategies and point out several new directions to diminish glycative stress including: plant-derived polyphenols as AGE inhibitors and glyoxalase inducers; improved dietary patterns, particularly Mediterranean and low glycemic diets; and enhancing proteolytic capacities of the ubiquitin-proteasome and autophagy pathways that are involved in cellular clearing of AGEs.

Protein quality control is essential for cellular survival. Failure to eliminate pathogenic proteins leads to their intracellular accumulation in the form of protein aggregates. Autophagy can recognize protein aggregates and degrade them in lysosomes. However, some aggregates escape the autophagic surveillance. Here we analyse the autophagic degradation of different types of aggregates of synphilin-1, a protein often found in pathogenic protein inclusions. We show that small synphilin-1 aggregates and large aggresomes are differentially targeted by constitutive and inducible autophagy. Furthermore, we identify a region in synphilin-1, necessary for its own basal and inducible aggrephagy and sufficient for the degradation of other pro-aggregating proteins. Although the presence of this peptide is sufficient for basal aggrephagy, inducible aggrephagy requires its ubiquitination, which diminishes protein mobility on the surface of the aggregate and favours the recruitment and assembly of the protein complexes required for autophagosome formation. Our study reveals different mechanisms for cells to cope with aggregate proteins via autophagy and supports the idea that autophagic susceptibility of prone-to-aggregate proteins may not depend on the nature of the aggregating proteins per se, but on their dynamic properties in the aggregate.