Predicted to enable phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase binding activity and protein-macromolecule adaptor activity. Involved in several processes, including determination of adult lifespan; nematode male tail tip morphogenesis; and positive regulation of early endosome to late endosome transport. Located in cytoplasmic vesicle and nucleus. Is expressed in several structures, including intestine; nervous system; pharyngeal-intestinal valve; pharynx; and vulva. Human ortholog(s) of this gene implicated in Machado-Joseph disease and breast cancer. Orthologous to several human genes including BECN1 (beclin 1).
WB Description
bec-1 encodes a coiled-coil protein orthologous to the yeast and mammalian autophagy proteins Atg6/Vps30/Beclin1; by homology, BEC-1 may be part of a Class III phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase complex that plays a role in localizing autophagy proteins to preautophagosomal structures and overexpression of C. elegans bec-1 in S. cerevisiae APG6/VPS30 mutants can rescue associated autophagy defects; bec-1 is also required for regulation of endocytic retrograde transport; in C. elegans, bec-1 activity is required for normal dauer morphogenesis and survival of dauer larvae, as well as for adult life span extension of daf-2(e1370) mutants at 15 degrees; in addition, bec-1(RNAi) indicates a role for bec-1 in normal growth rates, movement, and vulval morphogenesis; a bec-1::GFP reporter fusion is expressed in the hypodermis, intestine, nervous system, pharynx, and reproductive organs, all tissues that are remodeled during dauer larval development.