| abstract |
The invention provides methods and compositions for detecting and measuring the amount of autophagosomes in cells or tissues, including biopsy samples, in vitro, in situ and/or in vivo. By detecting and measuring the amount of autophagosomes in cells or tissues, the methods and compositions of the invention also measure the amount of autophagic activity in a cell or a tissue. In one aspect, the invention can be adapted to a plate-reader format for high-throughput screening of drugs that modulate autophagy, i.e., high-throughput detection of autophagic (autophagosome) activity in cells or tissues. In alternative embodiments, the compositions of the invention can localize into autophagosomes (AV), and these compositions can comprise any detectable moiety or group, e.g., a cadaverine, a radioactive, fluorescent-, bioluminescent and/or paramagnetic-conjugated reagent. |