Autophagy derived from latin words “self eating” is a normal regulated cell process where cytoplasmic materials are degraded through the lysosomal machinery and the contents reused by the cell.
During this process, organelles like mitochondria together with long-lived proteins are sequestred in a double-membrane vesicle delivered and degrade in lysosomes inside the cell.
Autophagy is activated in case of nutrient deprivation and plays a crucial role in the destruction of bacteria, viruses, and unnecessary proteins aggregates in cell.