The study of autophagy in the nervous system has predominantly centered on degeneration. Evidence is now cementing crucial roles for autophagy in neuronal development and growth, especially in axonal and presynaptic compartments. A picture is emerging that autophagy typically promotes the growth of axons and reduces presynaptic stability. Nonetheless, these are not rigid principles, and it remains unclear why autophagy does not always display these relationships during axonal and presynaptic development. Recent progress has identified mechanisms underlying spatiotemporal control of autophagy in neurons and begun to unravel how autophagy is integrated with other cellular processes, such as proteasomal degradation and axon guidance. Ultimately, understanding how autophagy is regulated and its role in the developing nervous system is key to comprehending how the nervous system assembles its stereotyped yet plastic configuration. It is also likely to inform how we think about neurodevelopmental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.

神经系统自噬的研究主要集中在退化上。证据现在正在巩固自噬在神经元发育和生长中的关键作用，特别是在轴突和突触前区室中。一幅图片正在出现，自噬通常会促进轴突的生长并降低突触前的稳定性。尽管如此，这些并不是严格的原则，并且尚不清楚为什么自噬在轴突和突触前发育过程中并不总是表现出这些关系。最近的进展已经确定了神经元中自噬的时空控制机制，并开始揭示自噬如何与其他细胞过程相结合，例如蛋白酶体降解和轴突引导。最终，了解自噬是如何被调节的以及它在发育中的神经系统中的作用是理解神经系统如何组装其刻板而可塑性的配置的关键。它也可能会告诉我们如何看待神经发育障碍和神经退行性疾病。