In regard to viral infections, CFTR-autophagy dysfunction limits viral clearance as well. In a recent study, it was determined that CFTR-deficient mice infected with RSV had an impaired ability to clear the virus compare to control mice [180]. Similarly, despite similar cytokine responses, respiratory epithelial cells with ΔF508-CFTR had a higher viral load when infected with rhinovirus in comparison to control cells [181]. From what we know about CFTR-autophagy’s role in pathogen clearance, it is likely that the observed findings in this study are a result of decreased autophagy in the ΔF508-CFTR cells that leads to decreased rhinovirus clearance and a higher viral load. Thus, proper CFTR-dependent autophagy function is necessary for the clearance of both bacterial and viral pathogens in the airway.