Anti-ATG13

Autophagy, the process of bulk degradation of cellular proteins through an autophagosomic-lysosomal pathway is important for normal growth control and may be defective in tumor cells. It is involved in the preservation of cellular nutrients under starvation conditions as well as the normal turnover of cytosolic components. This process is negatively regulated by TOR (Target of rapamycin) through phosphorylation of autophagy protein ATG1. ATG13 forms a complex with ULK1 and ULK2, the mammalian homologs of ATG1, and with FIP200. This complex is a target of TOR phosphorylation under normal conditions; inhibition of TOR by rapamycin or leucine deprivation leads to dephosphorylation of ATG13, ULK1 and ULK2, which then leads to autophagy. Knockdown of ATG13 inhibits autophagosome formation.