Small-molecule modulators of autophagy have been widely investigated as potential therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. In a recent issue of JBC, Safren et al. described a novel assay that uses a photoconvertible fusion protein to identify compounds that alter autophagic flux. Autophagy inducers identified using this assay were found to either alleviate or exacerbate neurotoxicity in different cellular models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, challenging the notion that autophagy stimulation can be used as a one-size-fits-all therapy for neurodegenerative disease.

中文翻译：

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揭示神经退行性疾病中的自噬。

自噬的小分子调节剂已被广泛研究作为神经退行性疾病的潜在疗法。在最近一期 JBC 中，Safren 等人。描述了一种新的检测方法，它使用一种光可转换的融合蛋白来识别改变自噬通量的化合物。发现使用该测定法鉴定的自噬诱导剂可以减轻或加剧肌萎缩侧索硬化症不同细胞模型中的神经毒性，这挑战了自噬刺激可用作神经退行性疾病的万能疗法的观点。