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. 2012:2012:760498.
doi: 10.1155/2012/760498. Epub 2012 Jan 16.

Autophagy in pancreatic cancer

Daniel Grasso  1 , Maria Noé Garcia, Juan L Iovanna
Affiliations

Autophagy in pancreatic cancer

Daniel Grasso et al. Int J Cell Biol. 2012.

Abstract

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a devastating disease with an extremely poor life expectancy and no effective treatment. Autophagy is a process of degradation of cytoplasmic component capable of recycling cellular components or eliminate specific _targets. The presence of autophagy in PDAC has been demonstrated. However, the implicated cellular pathways are not fully understood and, more importantly, the role of autophagy in PDAC is matter of intensive debate. This review summarizes recently published data in an attempt to clarify the importance of autophagy in this disease and try to reconcile apparently contradictory results.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Hypoxia induces autophagy. Hypoxia activates HIF-1α which in turn induces expression of the BH3-containing proteins BNIP3 and BNIP3L to compete with Beclin 1 for its interaction with Bcl2. As a consequence Beclin 1 is released to induce autophagy.
Figure 2
Figure 2
HMGB1 and RAGE induce autophagy. HMGB1 is released by necrotic and inflammatory cells. Expression of RAGE is induced by ROS in a NF-kB-dependent manner. On one hand, HMGB1 induces autophagy by its direct binding to the RAGE. On the other hand, HMGB1 induces autophagy by interacting with Beclin 1 which results in dissociation of Beclin 1-Bcl2 and subsequent induction of autophagy.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Chemotherapeutics agents induce autophagy. Gemcitabine induces expression of the autophagy starter protein VMP1 and CB1 and CB2 cannabinoids receptors, and production of ROS. Cannabinoids induce autophagy by activating ER stress and enhance gemcitabine action.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Autophagy of stromal cells fuel PDAC cells. PDAC release ROS to the tumoral microenvironment to induce autophagy in stromal cells. As consequence, stromal cells provide PDAC cancer cells with a steady stream of recycled nutrients and energy-rich metabolites.
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