DJ-1, a cancer and Parkinson's disease associated protein, regulates autophagy through JNK pathway in cancer cells

Autophagy mediates cellular self-digestion to degrade cytoplasmic proteins and organelles and plays important roles in tumorigenesis. DJ-1 is an oncogene product in association with cancers and tumorigenesis. In this study, we show that knockdown of DJ-1 induces autophagy through activating JNK pathway to promote Beclin 1 transcription, whereas overexpression of DJ-1 inhibits these processes. Moreover, inhibition of JNK pathway by SP600125 blocks autophagy activation and p62 degradation induced by knockdown of DJ-1. Our findings suggest that DJ-1 regulates autophagy in a JNK-dependent manner. Thus, the involvement of DJ-1 in autophagy regulation may be involved in tumorigenesis.