Fission Yeast Autophagy Machinery

Autophagy is a conserved process that delivers cytoplasmic components to the vacuole/lysosome. It plays important roles in maintaining cellular homeostasis and conferring stress resistance. In the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, autophagy is important for cell survival under nutrient depletion and ER stress conditions. Experimental analyses of fission yeast autophagy machinery in the last 10 years have unveiled both similarities and differences in autophagosome biogenesis mechanisms between fission yeast and other model eukaryotes for autophagy research, in particular, the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. More recently, selective autophagy pathways that deliver hydrolytic enzymes, the ER, and mitochondria to the vacuole have been discovered in fission yeast, yielding novel insights into how cargo selectivity can be achieved in autophagy. Here, we review the progress made in understanding the autophagy machinery in fission yeast.

Automated summary

Autophagy is a process that transports cellular components to the vacuole/lysosome, playing important roles in maintaining cellular homeostasis and stress resistance. In the fission yeast, autophagy is crucial for cell survival during nutrient depletion and ER stress. Research on fission yeast autophagy machinery has revealed similarities and differences with other eukaryotic models, such as budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Recent discoveries of selective autophagy pathways in fission yeast provide new insights into cargo selectivity in autophagy.