Autophagy is a bulk protein degradation process that is induced by starvation. The control
mechanism for induction of autophagy is not well understood. We found that Tor, a
phosphatidylinositol kinase homologue, is involved in the control of autophagy in the yeast,
Saccharomyces cerevisiae. When rapamycin, an inhibitor of Tor function, is added,
autophagy is induced even in cells growing in nutrient-rich medium. A temperature-
sensitivetor mutant also leads to induction of autophagy at a nonpermissive temperature …