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Review
. 2021 Jun 6;10(6):1411.
doi: 10.3390/cells10061411.

Friend or Foe: Paradoxical Roles of Autophagy in Gliomagenesis

Don Carlo Ramos Batara  1 , Moon-Chang Choi  2 , Hyeon-Uk Shin  1 , Hyunggee Kim  3 , Sung-Hak Kim  1
Affiliations
Review

Friend or Foe: Paradoxical Roles of Autophagy in Gliomagenesis

Don Carlo Ramos Batara et al. Cells. .

Abstract

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and aggressive type of primary brain tumor in adults, with a poor median survival of approximately 15 months after diagnosis. Despite several decades of intensive research on its cancer biology, treatment for GBM remains a challenge. Autophagy, a fundamental homeostatic mechanism, is responsible for degrading and recycling damaged or defective cellular components. It plays a paradoxical role in GBM by either promoting or suppressing tumor growth depending on the cellular context. A thorough understanding of autophagy's pleiotropic roles is needed to develop potential therapeutic strategies for GBM. In this paper, we discussed molecular mechanisms and biphasic functions of autophagy in gliomagenesis. We also provided a summary of treatments for GBM, emphasizing the importance of autophagy as a promising molecular target for treating GBM.

Keywords: autophagy; glioblastoma multiforme; treatment.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest relevant to this study to disclose.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Three main types of autophagy. (A) Macroautophagy, (B) Microautophagy, and (C) Chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA).
Figure 2
Figure 2
A schematic diagram of the molecular pathway of autophagy. (1) Induction; (2) Nucleation; (3) Elongation and Maturation; (4) Fusion to Lysosome; and (5) Degradation and Recycling.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Dual functions of autophagy in GBM tumorigenesis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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