BECN1 and malignant glioma: The conversion of the soluble form of MAP-LC3 (LC3-I) to the lipidated and autophagosome-associated form (LC3-II) is considered as one of the hallmarks of autophagy [21]; thus, we evaluate the expression of Beclin 1 (BECN1) and the appearance of LC3-II in both U251 and U87 malignant glioma cells following treatment with TGF-β1 (5 ng/ml) for 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 hours (Figure 2A and 2B).