(Relatively) recently, lysosomes were found to undergo SNARE-mediated membrane fusion with autophagosomes to drive the degradation and recycling of intracellular components via autophagy. Autophagosomes are brought into close proximity with lysosomes to enable trans-SNARE assembly and subsequent merger of the two compartments. Although the SNARE proteins involved in this process have been described, the regulation of the SNAREs that underly autophagosome-lysosome fusion is not well established. It is critical to understand how autophagosome-lysosome fusion is regulated as up- or down- regulation of autophagy has been implicated in cancer and neurodegeneration, respectively. A primary focus of the lab aims to identify and characterize regulatory factors that govern autophagosome-lysosome fusion. By understanding the molecular details of this fusion reaction, we will be better able to develop treatments and therapies for autophagy-associated disorders.

Autophagosome-lysosome fusion