Fig 6. Schematic representation of miR-144-3p inhibiting autophagy activation during mycobacterial infection by targeting ATG4a.

MiR-144-3p overexpression in macrophages directly represses ATG4a by binding to its 3’UTR, which in turn inhibits the formation of autophagosomes in macrophages and increases the survival rate of intracellular mycobacteria.