Autophagic Dysfunction in Neurodegeneration

Autophagy is a normal physiological process characterized by the degradation of complex cellular contents into a simpler one and reutilized them in biosynthetic pathways. Lysosomes are the cell organelle that participates in the process of autophagy. The brain is the most vulnerable organ in most lysosome disorders because neurons are inefficient in removing impaired organelles and waste materials. In the brain, autophagy suppresses the accumulation of ubiquitinated proteins that results in further damage to the neurons responsible for neurodegeneration. Autophagy mediates protective effects in age-related diseases. In the chapter, the authors describe the process of autophagy, the mechanism involved, and the implication of the autophagic pathways in the various neurodegenerative disorders.