This week’s articles show how a phospholipase both facilitates viral entry and protects the viral genome from degradation, how tumors induce autophagy in their microenvironment to provide nutrients for tumor growth, and how lipids regulate the associations of proteins with membranes.
HOST-PATHOGEN INTERACTIONS
Phospholipase roles in viral infection
Staring et al. (see commentary by McKnight and Lemon) show that the small phospholipase PLA2G16 faciliates delivery of picornavirus genomes into the cytoplasm and prevents their clearance by autophagy.
CANCER
Tumor-induced authophagy fuels growth
Katheder et al. show in Drosophila that tumors induce autophagy in the tumor microenvironment to provide nutrients that facilitate tumor growth.
CELL BIOLOGY
Regulating protein-membrane interactions
Gupta et al. developed a mass spectrometry approach to study how interfacial lipids regulate interactions between membranes and proteins, including G protein–coupled reeptors.