Getting intimate: lysosomes and ER rendezvous to control autophagy

Abstract

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the source of lysosomal calcium. The finding that the protein TMBIM6 -a putative ER calcium channel and cell death regulator-promotes calcium transfer from the ER to lysosomes to induce autophagy uncovers a missing piece in the puzzle of inter-organelle communication.