Elimination of Intracellular Bacteria by Autophagy

Autophagy functions to eliminate several types of intracellular bacteria. Autophagy acts as the front line of innate immunity due to its rapid response to infection, but the mechanism of its induction is complicated. Upon infection of host cells by intracellular bacteria, autophagosomes form by targeting and recruiting the factors required to surround the bacteria. Several targeting pathways have been identified, including the ubiquitin-dependent pathway, the bacterial sensor-dependent pathway, and the damaged vacuole- dependent pathway, each of which functions through adapter proteins for autophagosome recruitment. Here we describe these pathways and discuss their role in the elimination of invasive bacteria.