Pacer (also known as Rubicon-like) is a

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...

that in humans is encoded by the RUBCNL

gene In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...

. Pacer has been shown to increase cellular

autophagy Autophagy (or autophagocytosis; from the Ancient Greek , , meaning "self-devouring" and , , meaning "hollow") is the natural, conserved degradation of the cell that removes unnecessary or dysfunctional components through a lysosome-dependent re ...

through regulation of PI3KC3. Pacer contains a Rubicon homology (RH) domain at its C-terminus, which mediates binding to small GTPase Rab7. This domain is shared with RH domain containing family members Rubicon and

PLEKHM1 Pleckstrin homology domain-containing family M member 1 also known as PLEKHM1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''PLEKHM1'' gene. Function PLEKHM1 may have critical function in vesicular transport in osteoclasts. PLEKHM1 contain ...

. Whereas Pacer appears to upregulate autophagic activity, Rubicon is a negative regulator of

References

Further reading