Emerging functions of autophagy in kidney transplantation

In response to ischemic, toxic or immunological insults, the more frequent injuries encountered by the kidney, cells must adapt to maintain vital metabolic functions and avoid cell death. Among the adaptive responses activated, autophagy emerges as an important integrator of various extracellular and intracellular triggers (often related to nutrients availability or immunological stimuli), which, as a consequence, may regulate cell viability, and also immune functions, both innate or adaptive. The aim of this review is to make the synthesis of the recent literature on the implications of autophagy in the kidney transplantation field and to discuss the future directions for research. Autophagy is an evolutionarily conserved adaptive process that integrates immune signals and nutrient status to regulate cell viability, nonconventional secretion, and innate and adaptive immunity.