Autophagy and gene therapy combine in the treatment of liver disease.

Molecular biology holds the promise not only of increasing our understanding of basic cell biology, but also of advancing our ability to design targeted therapeutic methods for treating a range of diseases. One example that seems to hold tremendous potential is gene therapy, the use of exogenous DNA to replace or suppress a mutant gene in the patient's genome, or to boost the activity of a normal gene. A recent report (highlighted in a punctum in this issue of the journal) has brought autophagy into the gene therapy realm.