Figure 1
From: Inhibition of HIV-1 replication with stable RNAi-mediated knockdown of autophagy factors
Autophagy factors and their function in the autophagy pathway. Autophagy can be induced by e.g. starvation signals. Two complexes are needed to form the phagophore. One includes ULK1, the other the class III phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PIK3C3), PIK3R4 and Beclin 1, together with WIPI1. To form the autophagosome, two conjugation systems play a role. The Atg12-Atg5 system forms a complex with non-covalently bound Atg16. The conjugation of LC3-I (LC3 cleaved by Atg4) with PE generates LC3-II. This process requires Atg7 and Atg3. The Atg12-Atg5-Atg16 complex is detected only during the membrane formation stage; LC3-II is detected at each step of autophagosome formation. The autophagy inhibitor 3-methyladenine (3-MA) acts on the class III phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase.