Repertoires of Autophagy in the Pathogenesis of Ocular Diseases

• Main Authors: Yu-jie Li, Qin Jiang, Guo-fan Cao, Jin Yao, Biao Yan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cell Physiol Biochem Press GmbH & Co KG 2015-03-01
• Series: Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry
• Subjects: Autophagy; Age-related macular degeneration; Glaucoma; Cataract; Diabetic retinopathy; Photoreceptor degeneration
• Online Access: http://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/373980

Autophagy is an important intracellular degradative process that delivers cytoplasmic proteins to lysosome for degradation. Dysfunction of autophagy is implicated in several human diseases, such as neurodegenerative diseases, infectious diseases, and cancers. Autophagy-related proteins are constitutively expressed in the eye. Increasing studies have revealed that abnormal autophagy is an important pathological feature of several ocular diseases. Pharmacological manipulation of autophagy may provide an alternative therapeutic target for some ocular diseases. In this manuscript, we reviewed the relevant progress about the role of autophagy in the pathogenesis of ocular diseases.