Poly-glutamine expansions in ataxin-2 have been linked to neurodegenerative diseases, but the disease-driving mechanism remains elusive. Unexpectedly, we identified the yeast ortholog of ataxin-2, Pbp1p, in a screen for novel regulators of autophagy. Autophagy is a process that degrades cytoplasmic contents and damaged organelles to maintain cell viability during nutrient starvation, and is thought to be an effective mechanism for degrading aggregation-prone proteins linked to neurodegenerative diseases. Our work aims to understand how Pbp1p functions to induce autophagy in response to the metabolic status of cells. In efforts to understand the regulation mechanism, we have focused on its localization properties under different nutrient conditions and its effects on cellular metabolism. The potential function of ataxin-2/Pbp1p in autophagy hints that alterations in this function could play a key role in neurological pathogenesis.