Removing the waste bags: how p97 drives autophagy of lysosomes

Removal of ruptured lysosomes by autophagy is one of the mechanisms by which cells alleviate detrimental consequences of lysosome leakage and may prevent the initiation of signaling cascades that lead to cell death. In this issue of The EMBO Journal, Papadopoulos et al (2017) report an essential role of p97 and its cofactors in autophagic clearance of damaged lysosomes and provide evidences for the relevance of p97 in neurodegenerative conditions.