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. 2009 Apr 23;360(17):1785-6.
doi: 10.1056/NEJMcibr0810347. Epub 2009 Apr 15.

Crohn's disease, autophagy, and the Paneth cell

Daniel J Klionsky  1
Affiliations

Crohn's disease, autophagy, and the Paneth cell

Daniel J Klionsky. N Engl J Med. .
No abstract available

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Dr. Klionsky reports receiving lecture fees from Wyeth and having an equity interest in the journal Autophagy, of which he is editor-in-chief. No other potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Autophagy and the Intestinal Epithelium
Recent studies have indicated that defects in macroautophagy contribute to Crohn’s disease.– Macroautophagy can sequester cytoplasmic components, including organelles or (as depicted here) an invasive microbe, within double-membrane autophagosomes (Panel A). Fusion with the lysosome allows the breakdown of the cargo and elimination of the pathogen. Through exocytosis of granules, Paneth cells in the crypts of Lieberkühn secrete antimicrobial peptides and lysozyme, which regulate microbial status in the intestine and protect against pathogenic invasion (Panel B). Studies in mice2-4 have indicated that genetic variation in ATG16L1, which was previously associated with Crohn’s disease, results in defective autophagy in Paneth cells, a diminution of lysozyme in the intestinal lumen, and an increase in intestinal inflammation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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