ATG7 and neurodegenerative disease: Inhibition of basal autophagy in vivo following Atg5 or Atg7 deletion results in the accumulation of ubiquitinated protein aggregates leading to cytotoxicity and neurodegenerative disease (Hara et al, 2006; Komatsu et al, 2006), highlighting the critical cytoprotective role of basal autophagy.