Autophagy related 16 like 1 is a
protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respon ...
that in humans is encoded by the ''ATG16L1''
gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "... Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...
.
This protein is characterized as a subunit of the
autophagy
Autophagy (or autophagocytosis; from the Ancient Greek , , meaning "self-devouring" and , , meaning "hollow") is the natural, conserved degradation of the cell that removes unnecessary or dysfunctional components through a lysosome-dependent re ...
-related
ATG12-ATG5
Autophagy related 5 (ATG5) is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the ''ATG5'' gene located on Chromosome 6. It is an E3 ubi autophagic cell death. ATG5 is a key protein involved in the extension of the phagophoric membrane in autophagic ve ...
/ATG16 complex and is essentially important for the LC3 (
ATG8
Autophagy-related protein 8 (Atg8) is a ubiquitin-like protein required for the formation of autophagosomal membranes. The transient conjugation of Atg8 to the autophagosomal membrane through a ubiquitin-like conjugation system is essential for a ...
) lipidation and
autophagosome
An autophagosome is a spherical structure with double layer membranes. It is the key structure in macroautophagy, the intracellular degradation system for cytoplasmic contents (e.g., abnormal intracellular proteins, excess or damaged organelles, i ...
formation. This complex localizes to the membrane and is released just before or after autophagosome completion.
Furthermore, ATG16L1 appears to have other autophagy-independent functions, e.g., intracellular membrane trafficking regulation and
inflammation
Inflammation (from la, wikt:en:inflammatio#Latin, inflammatio) is part of the complex biological response of body tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or Irritation, irritants, and is a protective response involving im ...
.
Autophagy in general plays a crucial role in pathways leading to