Starved cells eat ribosomes

Autophagy is a process in which cytoplasmic components are broken down to supply materials for the synthesis of essential molecules under nutrient-limiting conditions. Because this process involves random sequestration of the cytoplasm by large membrane vesicles, considerable amounts of molecules, such as ribosomes, are necessarily degraded by autophagy. However, starving cells also promote additional selective degradation of ribosomes as a requirement for survival.