Pathology

Neuroscience

Autophagy

Pathological

Disease

LRRK2

Pathogenesis

Biology

Dopaminergic

Apoptosis

Immunology

Neurodegeneration

Parkinson's disease

Degeneration (medical)

Dopamine

Cell biology

Genetics

Medicine

Journal of Molecular Biology

Impaired protein homeostasis and accumulation of damaged or abnormally modified protein are common disease mechanisms in many neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson's disease (PD). As one of the major degradation pathways, autophagy plays a pivotal role in maintaining effective turnover of proteins and damaged organelles in cells. Several decades of research efforts led to insights into the potential contribution of impaired autophagy machinery to α-synuclein accumulation and the degeneration of dopaminergic neurons, two major features of PD pathology. In this review, we summarize recent pathological, genetic, and mechanistic findings that link defective autophagy with PD pathogenesis in human patients, animals, and cellular models and discuss current challenges in the field.

Autophagy in Parkinson's Disease