Clinical uses

Sources:

Autophagy and Clinical Applications

Autophagy Biomarkers

Autophagy can be measured in human beings using the redistribution of LC3 protein in cells, primarily through immunofluorescence techniques. This process can detect autophagy activation via the appearance of punctate LC3 patterns in leukocytes. However, this method requires advanced technology and is not yet standard in clinical settings. There is hope that with further development, non-invasive biomarkers for autophagy could become clinically relevant, enabling individuals to measure autophagy activation after interventions like fasting 1.

Autophagy and Cancer Treatment

Autophagy plays a significant role in both cancer prevention and treatment. By clearing damaged proteins and nucleic acids, autophagy helps prevent genomic instability that can lead to cancer. During oncogenesis, suppression of autophagy is common, contributing to the malignant transformation of cells.

While some treatments aim to inhibit autophagy to kill cancer cells, the use of drugs like Chloroquine shows mixed results. Chloroquine, originally an antimalarial drug, inhibits lysosomal function, which can potentially block autophagy and cause toxicity to cancer cells. However, its clinical effectiveness as a cancer treatment, particularly in combination with chemotherapy or radiotherapy, remains unconvincing in current trials 2.

Autophagy Biomarker

Guido Kroemer discusses the possibility of using a non-invasive biomarker to measure autophagy in humans through the study of the redistribution of LC Three. Although there is still work to be done, a clinically relevant biomarker for autophagy could be a valuable tool for measuring the effects of fasting and other interventions.
Found My Fitness
Dr. Guido Kroemer on Autophagy, Caloric Restriction Mimetics, Fasting & Protein Acetylation
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