The paper
N.S. Heaton, G. Randall, “Dengue virus–induced autophagy regulates lipid metabolism,” Cell Host Microbe, 8:422-32, 2010. Free F1000 Evaluation
The finding
Autophagy allows a cell to reuse essential molecules, eliminate bacterial invaders, or undergo programmed cell death. Nicholas Heaton and Glenn Randall at the University of Chicago discovered that dengue virus commandeers the autophagosome to convert cytoplasmic droplets of fatty acids into energy, for efficient viral replication. The study shows “how an intracellular pathogen can hijack the cell’s self-destruction machinery to fuel its selfish agenda for replication,” wrote F1000 Members Joeli Marrero and Sabine Ehrt in their evaluation.
The lipids
Heaton was studying the location and increased number of autophagosomes in dengue virus–infected cells when he noticed that the distribution of the autophagosomes correlated with that of lipid droplets. As infection progressed, the size of these lipid monolayer-bound droplets decreased, suggesting that the virus was using the fat stores.
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