autophagic cell death [GO_0048102]

autophagic cell death

ID: GO_0048102

A form of programmed cell death that is accompanied by the formation of autophagosomes. Autophagic cell death is characterized by lack of chromatin condensation and massive vacuolization of the cytoplasm, with little or no uptake by phagocytic cells.

The precise nature of autophagic cell death is still being debated, and the link between autophagy and cell death unclear. As autophagy is often induced under conditions of stress that could also lead to cell death, there has been a propagation of the idea that autophagy can act as a cell death mechanism; but others suggest that autophagy may simply be an attempt of dying cells to adapt to lethal stress rather than a mechanism to execute a cell death program. Further studies are required to resolve this controversy (see e.g. PMID:22082964, PMID:22052193, PMID:25236395). In the meantime, curators should carefully examine the experimental evidence presented in papers concerning autophagic cell death, and annotate accordingly. Recently, an instance of autophagic cell death, termed autosis, was discovered that relies on the plasma membrane Na+/K+-ATPase. Autosis was observed in vivo in the brain of rats subjected to an ischemic insult. It's still unclear if all cases of autophagic cell death require the Na+/K+-ATPase or not.