Molecular studies in the Huh7 HCC cell line and MDA-MB-231 mammary carcinoma cells have implicated both TGF-β signaling and the JNK cascade in autophagy induction, most likely by increasing the expression of several autophagy-related genes, Beclin1, ATG5, ATG7, and death-associated protein kinase 1 (DAPK). This evidence concerns the gene DAPK1 and hepatocellular carcinoma.