TGFβ-like DAF-7 acts as a systemic signal for autophagy regulation in .

In response to stress conditions, autophagy activity in multicellular organisms is systemically modulated to ensure maintenance of cellular homeostasis at an organismal level. Very little is known about the intercellular signals that elicit the long-range organism-wide autophagy response. Here we showed that during development, loss of cuticle annular furrow collagens elicits autophagy in the hypodermis, intestine, and muscle.

Genome-wide screen identifies signaling pathways that regulate autophagy during Caenorhabditis elegans development.

The mechanisms that coordinate the regulation of autophagy with developmental signaling during multicellular organism development remain largely unknown. Here, we show that impaired function of ribosomal protein RPL-43 causes an accumulation of SQST-1 aggregates in the larval intestine, which are removed upon autophagy induction. Using this model to screen for autophagy regulators, we identify 139 genes that promote autophagy activity upon inactivation.