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Microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) regulate microtubule stability and play critical roles in neuronal development and in maintaining the balance between neuronal plasticity and rigidity. MAP-light chain 3 beta (MAP-LC3β) and MAP-light chain 3 alpha (MAP-LC3α) are subunits of both MAP1A and MAP1B. MAP-LC3β, a homolog of Apg8p, is essential for autophagy and associated to the autophagosome membranes after processing. Two forms of LC3β, the cytosolic LC3-I and the membrane-bound LC3-II, are produced post-translationally. LC3-I is formed by the removal of the C-terminal 22 amino acids from newly synthesized LC3β, followed by the conversion of a fraction of LC3-I into LC3-II. LC3 enhances fibronectin mRNA translation in ductus arteriosus cells through association with 60S ribosomes and binding to an AU-rich element in the 3′ untranslated region of fibronectin mRNA. This facilitates sorting of fibronectin mRNA onto rough endoplasmic reticulum and translation.